


LarryBoy and the City That Hardly Sleeps

by ItsaMePatches



Category: VeggieTales
Genre: Additional Characters to be added, Gen, Other, Slow Build, Slow To Update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-26
Updated: 2017-11-15
Packaged: 2018-09-27 03:00:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 37,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9949121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsaMePatches/pseuds/ItsaMePatches
Summary: The adventures of LarryBoy continues on many years after "LarryBoy and the Tech Whisperer!"After a robbery by some rapscallions is thwarted by a mysterious figure by the name of "Dormancer", it appears there might be another superhero roaming around Bumblyburg, and Larry can't help but be curious by the hero and his sleepy method to not only stop baddies but even...wait, civilians? Including Alfred?!And what's with Thingamabob? What does he have to do with Dormancer?





	1. Lullaby in Ragtime

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter was probably too short, so I'll make sure it won't happen in the next one. :B

         The cooler temperatures, the gorgeous silvery moon which shone high above along with its tiny star friends, and the overall slowing down of everything within life of beings...all of these things could be the concoction used to create such a peaceful atmosphere of nighttime. Faint glowing from the bars, other establishments, and streetlights certainly assisted with providing alternative, closer-to-Earth-lights for anybody who was still awake, even at two-thirty at night.

         Ahh…

         Larry sighed through his nose as he snuggled his face deeper into his pillow, pulling the heavy blanket to himself meanwhile. In his sleep, he sighed again, pleasant once he felt more comfortable. _Boy_ , he was busy today, so he definitely needed some good night’s rest.

         A yawn escaped him; however, Alfred didn’t feel at all tired. In fact, once he shut down the computers in the Larry Cave for the night, he trekked up the stairs, to the living room, and then to the kitchen. It was time for a small late night snack and a hot cup of cocoa. Perhaps there was something interesting on the television he could enjoy as well. For the Brit, sleep wasn’t that much as a deal and _hadn’t been_ for many years now. The reason why was unknown to him and Larry; however, Alfred didn’t question it at all. Larry, on the other hand, worried about the lack of sleep that the butler got. Silly Larry, worrying about such a trifle...

         ...that means something of little to no importance.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Seconds apart from each other were the sincere calls of “goodnight” from workers of all statuses from a building as they drifted onto the sidewalk. Some of these fellas were going to stay up just a little longer, probably to get some food or have a nice drink. Other fellas chose to hit the hay because business-related activities drained them of energy.

         Through bleary eyes, he yawned quietly, though his mouth stretched as wide as it could go. He blinked a few times in order to dissolve the tears which formed mid-yawn. Boy, whoever decided having two long meetings in one day must have been sadistic, to say the least. No, he swear, he wasn’t the one who chose it. As _if_ he’d deprive anybody of sleep. That stuff was important!

         Wait, hold on...what’s happening at that small electronic store across the street?

         Two gentlemen in black slipped behind the establishment, the tallest of them with a crowbar slung over his shoulder.

         ...he was getting a bad feeling about them as he clutched his case closer to himself. It only took him a second to decide if he should check things out, but as soon as he heard the sudden creaking and breaking of wood, he definitely made up his mind.

         Thankfully for him, there was a perfect alley way to slide into.

  


 

 

         “Hurry up man!”  
         “I’m trying!”

         The short scallion huffed with a roll of his eyes while the other scallion grunted and continued to pull apart the nails and wood which was nailed over the back door.

        The taller one spoke up, grunting again, “Why did they do this anyway? Seems inconvenient if you ask me.”

         He stepped aside just on time for the final piece of wood to smack onto the cold pavement with a “clunk”. “Heck if I know. C’mon, let’s go already.”

         He nodded to him and then glanced to the doorknob. Upon turning the knob, he and his accomplice entered the store which practically filled itself to the brim with televisions, DVD players, CD players, computers, and various smaller tech goodies on shelves and within display cases which stretched to the ceiling. “So we’re supposed to grab as much as we can, right?”

         “If ya ask me,” he commented to the tall scallion as they both filed into the shop, “I would’ve picked something a bit more profitable than this little joint.”

         “I don’t know, Trey,” he lifted a DVD player and then checked the price attached to it, “electronics are pretty profitable. I get what Juan was going on about.”

         Again, a huff came from the scallion known as Trey. “At least with jewelry and money you can grab a lot. Over half of the stuff here almost takes two people to snatch!” His eyes drifted to the right, over to where the headphones were. Why on earth would those be sold here? He approached them and picked up a set, examining its brand name and the asking price.

         ...oh.

         “...people are willing to shell out almost a hundred or two for headphones?! Can you believe this, Duri?!”

         He looked over his shoulder while carefully putting the DVD player into his large backpack. “They’re high definition and can block out any noise. I have a pair of them from the last place we hit.”

         “I don’t know whether to be impressed or question you.”  
         “Be impressed.”   
         “I’ll think about it.”

         While Trey went to drop each and every expensive-as-heck headphone into his backpack, Duri decided to try grabbing a laptop computer...or two...or three. Gosh some of them were so thin, even while they were packed in a box. Good thing he had an extra bag so he could grab more.

         He grabbed a laptop, but he paused all of a sudden, for he heard the faint “ding-a-ling” as though wind chimes were in the room. Duri glanced about, blinking. He didn’t see a wind chime, so where did the sound come from?

          **_Beep!_ ** “Hey, hurry up! I think their security system went off!”

         The taller of the two puffed and then nodded, replying, “Alright alright…”

         Trey went to the back entrance and watched as his partner stuffed his bag with -- what it looked like -- laptop computers from atop the shelves. What a weird placement. Weren’t they typically in cases because of their value and because they’re a hot item that people are willing to steal?

         ...you know what? Never mind.

         He grunted for a few seconds, but the tall scallion successfully shoved one more laptop into the extra bag. “Got it!”

         While Duri finally made it back to him, Trey said with a yawn, “Can’t wait to get back and hit the sack…”

         “ _Why wait when you could it right now?_ “

         A shiver ran up his spine for some reason, but he ignored it. “Because,” Trey answered the deep disembodied voice with a shrug, “we’ve gotta take your motorcycle to get home. Why would you even ask that?”

         “Trey…?”  
         “What?”   
         “...I didn’t say anything.”

         The two paled and then Duri got closer to Trey, growing anxious by the second. The shorter scallion nudged his head over his shoulder, gesturing and suggesting they should turn around. Once Duri nodded, they spun in unison. Nobody was behind them. All they could see was the nice outdoors presenting itself to them.

         They sighed in relief.

          **_Ding-a-ling._ **

         The chimes sounded behind them, the same one which Duri heard a moment ago. Duri, recognizing this, tugged the shoulder of Trey’s black sweater twice. Trey glanced up to him and then when the taller scallion nudged his head to the exit, he obviously agreed. They had to get out of here--

         The head of a crooked staff reached high above the duo’s heads and then pushed the door closed ever so quietly. Although the room had limited lighting, they could see a mobile dangling from the staff, producing a soft jingle.

         Duri and Trey had no choice but to see who could be behind them…

         ...and boy, did they regret it.

         A tall figure, a rather _tall_ one, donned in a thick purple cloth loomed over Trey and Duri. Because of the hood, his face wasn’t able to be seen by either scallion, but what they _could_ see was an amulet which hung from his neck and shone faintly. Now, they weren’t certain if they were seeing things due to the lights being minimal or what they saw was real, but whichever was indeed true...something like a haze surrounded the form’s non-existent feet all the way to the tip of his head.

         Trey broke the silence, whispering to his accomplice, “Didn’t bring a weapon either?”

         Shakily, Duri shook his head. “No…?”

         He gulped and then looked to the figure. “What d’ya want? Can’t you see we’re busy?”

         Instead of answering the inquiry, the figure said with amusement in his low voice, “You seem tired.”

         Duri turned and tried to pry the door open, even as the staff which belonged to the unknown person remained glued to it. Meanwhile, Trey stammered defensively, “S--so what if I am? I’m plannin’ on sleeping when I get home! Now how ‘bout you move your cane and let me and my pal leave before you get hurt!”

         “I can tell right away that you can’t hurt me...especially while you’re in that state.”  
         “...what ‘state’?”

         A yelp from Trey was what made Duri spin back around just in time to see the short scallion now being held up to the cloaked figure’s face. “Trey!”

         Ignoring Duri’s cry, the deep voiced man said to Trey, “Those dark rings under your eyes sure stand out from here. I could relate...”

         Trey, from where he dangled now, had a perfect view of the deep purple, half-lidded eyes which practically seeped into his the longer he stared into him. He couldn’t help it though. It was as though the man was pulling him into a trance! Trying to keep himself calm, he feebly chuckled out, “And that matching eyeshadow sure stands out. Your point is?”

         Okay, Duri had no idea what to do. Trying to take this huge guy down would be -- here’s an understatement -- difficult task-wise. Just as he took a nervous step forward, he spotted the purple haze becoming more visible and swirling higher and higher until it continuously danced about the man’s broad shoulders. Oh boy, this guy was magic, wasn’t he?

         “Like I said earlier,” the man in purple answered as his eyes suddenly began to form a hypnotic pattern within them, “why wait when you could sleep _right now_?”

         How he wanted to avert those shimmering, hypnotizing eyes in front of him; however, Trey couldn’t! Those darn eyes were forcing him to stay still and simply accept what was happening. The sensation was weird. His body felt numb, but there was a warmth surrounding it while the lids of his eyes grew heavy by the second. He yawned, a rather long one. Finally, his vision darkened, and his head fell back.

         Duri gulped hard as the figure wrapped Trey’s slumbering form into his cloak briefly and then settling him to the floor with care. He probably gulped loud, for the tall man tilted his head to him and began to drift toward him. The scallion backed up; however, it wasn’t much, distance-wise because his back immediately made contact against the door. The chimes on the man’s staff sounded once more.

         And before Duri soon joined Trey in Dream Land, he remembered stuttering in question, “Um...wh--who are you anyway…?”

         He finally saw the man’s face for himself. A much older man stared at him with a sleepy smile and the shiniest pair of eyes he ever saw.

         Over the sweet, gentle chiming of his mobile, the man answered.

  
  
  


         Officer Scooter climbed out of his patrol vehicle moments after his fellow officers arrived to the electronic store which was in the process of being broken into. As he approached the building, he asked one of the officers, “Alright laddie, what do we have?”

         “Well,” he started, “at two thirty-five, the security system went off. We arrived here as soon as possible and found _these two_ here.”

         Two rapscallions in black ski masks were sleeping away in front of the store entrance with a heavy blanket wrapped around their bodies. When Officer Scooter curiously removed the blanket, he and the other officers saw a rope was keeping the duo tied together just in case they decided to run off. In the meantime, two officers were digging through the four backpacks sitting atop a police car. Of course, it was all stuff belonging to the store.

         “Funny,” Scooter commented. “Couldn’t have been LarryBoy who did this, could it?”

         “We didn’t signal him,” the officer beside him responded with a nonchalant shrug. “Didn’t think we’d need to over something so small…”

         “But who--”  
         “Hey, look at the blanket. There’s something etched on it…”

         The mustachioed officer bundled the blanket, searching around for what the other man said. At first, there was nothing, but once Scooter reached to another corner of the admittedly soft material, he finally discovered the etching of a golden-colored patch. It read:

          _The Dormancer_.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

**_LarryBoy and the City That Hardly Sleeps_ **

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

         “As for today, it’s going to be a comfy sixty-five degrees, which is a perfect day to go outside and have a picnic or party,” a calming voice droning on the television was the first thing Larry heard as he bounded down the stairs with a loud yawn while he stretched.

         Aaah, Saturday. How he loved this day of the week!

         Larry poked his head into the living room, saying cheerfully, “Mornin’ Alfred!” Though, his smile dropped when he noticed how his butler was curled up against the arm of the couch with a sleepy look on his face. He blinked. “Alfred?”

         Alfred yelped, sitting up straight, causing his monocle to go askew. “Master Larry,” he squeaked from surprise, “how long have you been there?!”

         He cocked a brow. “Not long. You okay? You don’t look so well.”

         “I’m fine. Why do you ask?”  
         “You’ve got rings under your eyes. Have you been gettin’ enough sleep?”

         The Brit laughed lightly as he fixed his eyepiece. “Sleep? Come now, I don’t need to sleep often. I’m fine! What you’re seeing is probably the way the light’s hitting my face!”

         “Alfred…” Larry pointed out with scrunched eyebrows, “you’ve always told me to sleep to keep up my energy. Shouldn’t you be doing the same so you don’t get sick or somethin’?”

         “I’ve _plenty_ of stamina to keep me going with only four hours of sleep,” he assured Larry and rose from the couch. His eyes glanced to the clock sitting atop the television. “It’s a little late to have breakfast,” he suggested, “but how about we go out for some brunch today?”

         Larry immediately perked up. “I’m in!” He leaned in closer, winking. “I’ll drive for us.”

         Another laugh bubbled from Alfred at the younger man’s behaviour. “Oh, so eager!”

         “ _Especially_ since it looks like you didn’t sleep at all.”   
         “...Master _Larry_...”   
         “Don’t wanna fall asleep at the wheel!”

         He groaned out loud. “Master Larry,” he practically whined, “you sound like _me_ saying that!”

         Larry couldn’t contain the smug grin as he chimed in response, “Like what you’ve said about me: you’re rubbing off on me for the better!”

         The Brit’s cheeks burned from embarrassment at that. “How on earth do you remember me saying that? That was _years_ ago!”

         With a small shrug, his smile’s intensity softened. “I thought it was really sweet when you said it.”

         “I’m...going to get myself cleaned up. I suggest you do the same since you’re still in your pjs…”  
         “ ‘kay.”

         Try as he might, the snicker at how embarrassed Alfred became all of a sudden spilled from Larry’s lips. He was about to head back to his room to prepare for their outing, but then something from the television captured his attention.

         “On the corner of Oaks and Mulberry, Jim’s Electronics almost became the victim of a theft overnight,” the male news reporter announced, “however, the thieves were captured in an unusual manner and placed outside of the store.”

         The camera on the television switched to a photo of two scallions sleeping, propped against each other with their backs against the store. In addition to that, there appeared to be a heavy-looking purple blanket tucked around their body. Larry quirked a brow at this. Huh, that’s weird. Did the bad guys get sleepy mid-theft?

         “At first, the police believed this could’ve been a new method being tested out by our own LarryBoy, but upon inspection of the blanket, they discovered the words ‘ _The Dormancer_ ’ patched onto it. Could it be that our city has another superhero? We might never know.”

         In a hushed, confused tone, he muttered, “Another superhero…?” Larry plopped onto the couch with his eyebrows knitting together. “Huh…”

         “Neither thieves could remember much of the encounter, though their faint description seems to support another hero being in Bumblyburg. Moving on with other news…”

         Larry ignored the television and began to wonder about this possible newcomer. “Well,” he said out loud, “it wouldn’t be the first that I’ve met a fellow superhero. I’ve met plenty of ‘em! Vogue, S-Cape, Thingamabob…” he faltered, just a little, “...Batsman, and Tech Whisperer--”

         “Master Larry?”

         He made a squeaked “ee!” and shot off the couch. Alfred was standing at the living room entrance in a lightweight coat, a sweater, and a red scarf draping his shoulders. He must have heard the last two names he listed, for the Brit appeared to be taken aback rather than curious as usual. “O--oh, hey Alfred! Dressed already?”

         Alfred darted his stare elsewhere for a moment, but then returned his brown eyes to the younger man and then huffed, “I am...unlike you.”

         He gave him a sheepish grin. “Sorry. The news was talkin’ about some guy named Dormancer stopping a pair of thieves last night and got absorbed in it. Curious ‘n’ all.”

         He blinked. “Dormancer?”

         “A superhero.”  
         “A superhero?”

         “Y’know, like I am?”  
         “I know that, silly. It’s just...there’s another superhero here?”

         Larry shrugged. “Looks like it. I wonder if I might bump into him the next time I’m out there…” He decided, since he was now up, to go and get dressed instead of making Alfred wait any longer. After all, it’s been almost three weeks since the two of them got to go out like this. He wasn’t certain about the Brit, but he missed doing it. “I’m gonna get dressed. Be right back, okay?”

         Alfred nodded, replying, “Will do, Master Larry.”

         “Oh,” As Larry took a step up the stairs, he looked back to Alfred, “and Alfred?”

         “Yes?”  
         “...y’know you don’t have to call me ‘Master Larry’, right?”

         Taking a seat upon the couch once more, the tall man assured him with a bow of his head, “I rather _enjoy_ calling you that, but thank you for letting me know that I’m not required to.”

         ‘ _It was worth a shot again_ ,’ his mind said.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         At a bar and grill in the downtown area…

         With a pleasant sigh after downing a large mug of root beer, the shorter of the two gourds sat back against the booth seat. “Aah, that hit the spot!”

         Meanwhile, his brother briefly glanced over to him, midway through his own drink as he questioned all of a sudden, “Didn’t this place used to be somethin’ else a long time ago…?”

         Jimmy, the shorter of the two brothers, thought for a millisecond in order to retrieve any possible answers. “Yeah, actually…” He shoveled some spaghetti into his mouth, answering, “This used to be Nezzer’s Bar and Grill...or Pub and Grill. I forget. He gave it up a little while after that ‘Bumblyburg Blackout’ that happened before Christmas. Why’d ya ask?”

         Jerry, who was the quiet one of the two, sat back as well. If he had feet, he probably would’ve been lightly kicking them. “I thought I saw him just now.”

         When Jimmy quirked an eyebrow, non-verbally asking him where Nezzer could be seen, Jerry bowed his head a little and then nudged it over to where the entrance was twice. Jimmy turned around in his seat but saw nobody matching Nezzer’s body type standing there among the people flowing in and out of the lively establishment.

         “I was thinking that he might miss the place,” Jerry confessed.

         “After all these years? Maybe.” Jimmy returned to his former position with a grunt. “Buuuut, I’ve heard he’s been doin’ okay at wherever he’s working at now. Hope the big guy’s okay. Anyway, let’s order some food. I’m starving!”

         Meanwhile, from the right-hand corner of the entrance, a figure was peeping into the bar and grill with a small smile before pulling away.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         “They were asleep in front of the store?”

         Larry and Alfred had arrived to an Old Country Buffet by the time eleven-thirty rolled around. As soon as they took a seat at a booth, Larry couldn’t help but dump as much info on Alfred about “Dormancer” and the attempted theft that was spoke about on the news.

         Larry nodded as he swallowed his toast and eggs. “They didn’t look beat up or anythin’...”

         Alfred hummed in thought, taking a sip of his coffee while his eyes drifted to the window beside them. He sat his cup down. “Dormancer…” he curiously murmured the name. “A portion of it appears to be the word ‘ _dormant_ ’ which could hint that he’s able to temporarily slow down one’s physical functions and, perchance, leaving them in a deep sleep for awhile.”

         He raised his brows at this. “He can make people sleep?”

         “If what you’re telling me is true, then yes.”  
         “Whoa…”

         “An interesting manner to fight crime, I admit.” Alfred paused for a moment as he grabbed the container of creamer and poured a small amount into his coffee. Far too bitter, still. Hopefully the creamer would assist. “I wonder how long _and_ strong the effects are...”

         Larry immediately said, “Maybe enough for you to get some sleep.”

         He frowned, his eyes going to him. “Honestly, Master Larry...the four hours I overall get is _more_ than enough!”

         The out-of-costume superhero frowned back. “Sure doesn’t look like it.”

         With a lift of his cup, he told Larry, “ _I’ll_ bet he couldn’t put me to sleep, even with the strongest of his spells or whatever he uses.”

         “Anyway,” the buck-toothed male rose from his seat, announcing, “I’m gonna grab some more mac’n’cheese. Want some?”

         “For brunch? No thank you.”  
         “Bacon omelette then!”

         Alfred beamed brightly. “Thank you, Master Larry.”

         Off Larry went to the area which had countless of buffet tables spread out for all to enjoy. He grabbed two medium-sized plates -- one for him, and one for Alfred. A small smile crept to his face as he glanced over his shoulder to the Brit. Man, he’s come a long way from the Tech Whisperer days. Never saw him sad, crying…things like that.

         His head craned back to its normal position. “I’m gonna give him the biggest omelette they have,” he said to himself. Larry wanted to make certain Alfred’s food was still warm, so he decided to grab the omelette after the gooey, breaded mac’n’cheese landed safely on his plastic plate.

         Attempting not to drool over the cheesy pasta was an especially difficult task as he carefully scooped the ladle-filled macaroni and cheese from the serving tray to his plate. Sure, Alfred was going to give him the stink eye for piling the plate, but hopefully he would be partly distracted by the fluffy goodness that was bacon omelette.

         “There we go.” Larry beamed at the perfect amount -- well, for him anyway -- sitting upon his plate. As he turned in order to head to where the breakfast items were, he ran face first against something soft, causing him to grunt -- okay, _squeak_ \-- on impact. He backed up a little in an instant and saw a rather...tall guy in a simple business suit staring down at him with a confused look. “Um, sorry about that,” Larry apologized.

         But the huge man gave him a small half smile whilst his purple eyes softened and replied, “It’s alright. I get distracted by the food here too! The macaroni and cheese especially gets to me.”

         “Heh, same here…” Almost shyly, Larry bowed his head and then took off to the breakfast foods.

         He chuckled as soon as the younger male was gone. “Cute little fella. Almost looks a little like…” he paused, interrupting himself. “Actually, I wouldn’t be surprised if he _was_ ,” he muttered before turning to the food, “sometimes the answer to anything can be so obvious…”

         Suddenly, he pulled back to yawn. And as he did just that, the work tag attached to his navy blue jacket shone thanks to the light striking it. Upon the badge, there was a name which read: _Mister Nezzer_.

 

 

* * *

 

 

**_to be continued_ **


	2. March 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot of stuff seems to be happening on March 13. There's a birthday, a costume party, and the second appearance of Dormancer, but this time...the man with the power of dormancy chooses a different kind of target.
> 
> Oh, and someone who doesn't even live in Bumblyburg is there...actually, two people are there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be up on, well, the thirteenth...sadly, I kept having writers block during the middle of the chapter, so it took me a lot longer than first planned. Sorry it took so long! :B

* * *

 

 

         “Say, Alfred.”  
         “Yes, Master Larry?”

         Larry looked over to the butler for a brief second as he continued driving down the street with fellow vehicles on every direction. “I’m gonna have ta drop you off someplace else for a while. Gotta shop a bit.”

         For Alfred, the natural reaction to this was, of course, to be rather confused. “What? What on earth for…?”

         “Well…” Larry purposely trailed off, “I think there’s somethin’ comin’ up, _special_ day-wise.”

         That was when Alfred took a guess, one which made Larry blink widely and scrunch his eyebrows together, “Saint Patrick’s Day? I don’t see why you need me to be elsewhere for that.” The worst part was that Alfred didn’t sound like he was kidding, either. He was _truly_ confused.

         “Uh…y--yeah, Saint Patrick’s Day. I wanna get something green for you to wear!”  
         “A simple tie would be fine with me.”

         Larry made a tiny “pffbt” through his teeth at that. “Would you get upset if I got ya somethin’ bigger than that?”

         “I wouldn’t be upset, _no_ ,” he replied, “but I would and _will_ say right now that there’s _no need_ to do that. Whatever you get me is perfect.”

         “But I wanna spoil yooooou--”  
         “Master Larry, the whining isn’t necessary. Anyway, it’s the thought that counts, not how big the item in question is.”

         The simple black car finally went up a slope and pulled up to the front of the enormous mansion. At the same time Alfred glanced to him, Larry turned his head to the Brit with a smile. “I know but it’s a _special_ occasion. Gotta get it done by tomorrow, Alfie.”

         “Alfie”? Oh bother. Alfred felt his cheeks burn at the nickname being used by Larry, but before the other man could notice it, he ducked his head a bit as a feeble method to conceal at least a small chunk of it. He coughed, clearing his throat. “I will be taking my departure from you for the time being, _Master_ Larry.” He opened the door and hopped out of the vehicle.

         Larry grinned at how blushy the British man became and couldn’t help but lean back against his seat to watch Alfred closely. “Say Alfred,” he asked, “how ‘bout a green vest or a shamrock pin? They’re small, but big enough for people to see.”

         Alfred shut the door with care as he thought with a small hum. His eyes trailed off to the distance but then returned to Larry. “Those sound fine. Certainly a lot better than wearing nothing green and having to endure you, Junior, _and_ Laura pinching me,” he added that last portion with a huff and then headed to the mansion door.

         When Alfred opened the door, Larry called out, “See ya, Alfred!”

         Goodness, he couldn’t remain salty at the cucumber anymore, for Alfred felt a small smile creep onto his face as he looked over his shoulder and responded with, “I’ll be seeing you later, Master Larry. Drive safely!”

         “I will!” Larry waited seconds after his close friend entered and shut the door behind him before, at last, he departed from his residence, though he was still a bit bugged that Alfred failed to remember what day was approaching and fast. He didn’t let it bother him though, for all he knew, it was just wasn’t something which was on Alfred’s mind at the moment.

          “Y’know,” he suddenly pointed out to himself, breaking the silence as he pulled to a red light, “I haven’t done anything LarryBoy-ish in the like for a while. Wonder how long that might last.”

          Considering this is a _LarryBoy_ title, the answer to that, you innocent sentient cucumber is...not that much longer, _that’s_ for sure.

  


         “Well, there aren't any house chores to do,” Alfred said upon emerging from the bathroom after cleaning up, “I guess I’ll simply...hang about in the Larry Cave--” he paused, however, when his eyes drifted to the open door which led to Larry’s bedroom. He hopped to the door and then pushed it open, causing it to creak ever so quietly. “Perhaps he has some clothes I could wash first…”

          To his surprise, not a single article of clothing belonging to the superhero was on the ground...not even a pair of socks which seemed unnecessary considering they don’t have feet. He didn’t bother venturing deeper into the room upon seeing the clean floor.

          Alfred prepared to leave, turning around, but suddenly, he spotted the African Savanna Animals calendar hanging above the desk beside the room entrance. “What’s this?” He adjusted his monocle as he leaned to the calendar for a peek. Alfred emitted a brief hum in thought and then stood up straight with a shrug. “I guess there’s a party happening soon. I’ll have to ask him about it when he isn’t busy.”

          Apparently, the sticker of a birthday cake and a tiny doodle of Alfred’s head both located in the box for the thirteenth of March didn’t click with the British man.

 

 

* * *

 

 

          A faded, woman’s voice chimed out as he exited the final store he needed to stop by, “Thank you, come again!”

          Larry peered into the four bags he carried against his chest while taking small steps away from the store, meanwhile. “Alfred’s gonna like these clothes and accessories I got for his birthday.” He paused suddenly. “I wonder if he remembered his birthday’s comin’ up. He was totally clueless about it. Guess there’s somethin’ goin’ on in that handsome mind of his.”

          Squeezing through the crowds and crowds of people, Larry successfully returned to the mall parking lot with the occasional grunt from him due to adjusting the weighing bags in his possession. It was when Larry placed all the bags in the back seat with extra care for the items within them that the sound of a man crying out (“Hey, he took my wallet! Get back here!”) grabbed his attention. He spun around with a shut of the car door in time to see a carrot man running off the other end of the parking lot with great speed while another carrot man shouted some more at him.

          “Time to go back in action,” was all Larry said. His eyes quickly darted about, wondering where he could change without being caught. Dang, forgot he was far away from buildings and alleys...and of course, no more phone booths. He looked to the car and knew right away this was going to be awkward.

  


          The petty robber made a sharp turn right across the crosswalk, ahead a few feet, and then one more sharp turn to the right. He was in the parking garage where he had his car parked and ready for him. Just needed to reach the second level...

          A figure dropped down from above and landed a couple of feet in front of him without warning, instantly causing the thief to freeze in fear.

          Donned in his purple and yellow attire was Bumblyburg’s own--

          “L--LarryBoy!” The nameless thief took a step back whilst he nervously clutched the stolen wallet. “Um...wh--what are you doing here?”

          “I overheard somebody saying someone stole their wallet,” LarryBoy spoke before he briefly glanced to the object in the carrot man’s hold and then returned his brown eyes to his face.. “Sorta looks like the one _you’re_ holding, in fact.”

          He faltered then looked at the wallet and to LarryBoy. “Well...shoot.”

          This carrot fella who’s just a regular baddie and will never get a name tried -- _just_ tried -- to turn and run from the superhero; however, he was struck by one of the plungers on LarryBoy’s head before he had a chance to begin chase.

          “...can I at least go to the bathroom before you hand me over to the cops?”

 

 

          “At least he let me go to the bathroom,” was what the thief casually muttered to himself just before Officer Scooter shut the back door of the police vehicle on him.

          “You’ll be gettin’ plenty of bathroom breaks while you’re in jail, mun,” Officer Scooter responded.

          Meanwhile, the man who had his wallet stolen in the first place sighed in relief as he shoved the long brown money holder into his shirt’s breast pocket. “That LarryBoy sure gets around. Too bad he ran off before I could thank him…”

          Suddenly, a child’s voice called out from afar, “Dad!”

          The carrot man turned and saw his daughter running up to him with two bags. “Laura! Why didn’t you stay in the costume store like I asked you to?”

          The young girl explained in defense with worried, furrowed brows, “I saw you trying to run after that man who took your wallet!”

          He blinked. “Oh. Well,” he assured her with a small smile, “don’t worry. LarryBoy got it back, thank goodness.”

          Laura, through the feeling of relief washing over her, perked up at the superhero’s name being brought up. “LarryBoy?” She was prepared to inquire some more; however, she felt something watching the group. Her head rotated to the right and then up. Very faintly and through squinted eyes, Laura captured the sight of a familiar purple and yellow figure standing on top of the Macy’s building.

          She grinned brightly. Man, LarryBoy was _everywhere_ , wasn’t he!

          Meanwhile, LarryBoy took one last glance at the family and police officer before aiming a plunger off to the taller building beside him and launching himself away. Time to sneak off to slip into his regular attire and return home.

 

 

* * *

 

 

          “I _still_ can’t believe you gave up the pub for a job at telemarketin’. Must’ve been outta your mind when you made that decision...”

          Nezzer rolled his eyes at the decorative gourd across from him at the kitchen table before he calmly replied, “Runnin’ the pub was causing me stress, Lunt. I needed to have a calmer work environment.”

          Lunt interjected with, “You could’ve gotten a _cafe_ then! Seriously, _telemarketing_ was the first thing that came to mind?”

          “Are you always gonna bring this up whenever you spend the night here?”  
          “Listen, Nezzie: when you go from owning an entire pub to being under some grumpy beet’s telemarketing company...it’s a tragedy.”

          The large man sighed. “Would it seem better if I told you that I don’t have problems sleeping like I used to?”

          Lunt quirked a brow, nonchalantly asking, “Your insomnia’s gone?”

          He smiled. “ _Definitely_. I’ve never felt so...at peace before.” Nezzer paused, thinking upon what he just said. “Well, I mean...I’ve felt like this before, but that was a long time ago.”

          The right side of his lip went into a straight line for a short period. Well, at least there was a pro to switching jobs, but Lunt was still a bit disappointed with Nezzer’s new job. Telemarketing sounded so boring! He gave it some thought for a moment and realized that maybe the boring aspect of it caused Nezzer to finally get some much needed rest without sleeping issues.

          “Anyway,” Nezzer spoke up, breaking Lunt out of his thoughts in an instant, “how’s everythin’ in Valli with S-Cape?”

          The short man perked up in his seat and then a bemused grin came to his face. “Been doing just fine actually! In fact,” he added, leaning in without his grin vanishing, “nailed a couple of bank robbers who tried to ambush me with guns yesterday. Shoulder got grazed mid-escape while dodgin’, but other than that, I was able to nab them with ab-so-lute _ease_.” Lunt shrugged his right shoulder, causing the arm sleeve to slump down a bit. “Wanna see?”

          “ _No_.”  
          “Not bloody or anything, I promise.”

          “I can see the bandage from here just fine. Besides, I’ve seen your shoulder before. I’ll imagine a gash being there.”

          He huffed, pretending to be offended while Nezzer rose in order to get their hot chocolate prepared. “Now it’s _my_ turn to ask a question.”

          Nezzer, pouring a kettle of hot water into two mugs, responded over his shoulder, “Go ahead.”

          “Is there, like, another superhero in Bumblyburg?”  
          “Why do you ask that?”  
          “ ‘cause while I waiting for you to get here, I was watchin’ the news and saw a report about a Dormancer guy who stopped two guys from stealing a bunch of electronics. Get this though...he made them _sleep_ or somethin’!”

          Nezzer quirked a brow while mixing the hot chocolate in the mugs at the same time until they turned a perfect shade of brown and he could smell the delicious, pure chocolate. “Sleep huh?”

          “Kind of a weird way to stop a criminal if ya ask me, but whatever floats his boat,” Lunt said with a shrug.

          “Weird, sure,” the tall man replied as he returned to the table with the drinks, “but it’s not only a harmless way to stop crime, but sleeping’s a pretty big deal. Besides,” he added, “it happened around two in the morning. They should’ve stayed home and rested.”

          Again, the gourd shrugged. “I _guess_ they should’ve. Surprised LarryBoy didn’t show up first.” Before Nezzer could say something in response, Lunt suddenly sat up with his brows following pursuit. “Hey, Nezzie! You got anythin’ going on tomorrow night? There’s a costume party at the community center.”

          “A costume party…?” Nezzer took a sip of his hot chocolate and then said out loud, “Well, I _am_ off tomorrow and the day after that. I don’t see why not.”

          “Nice!” He grinned widely at the answer. “Maybe we can stay there all night! It’s supposed to last until two or three from what I’ve heard.”

          Nezzer mentally frowned at this. Two or three in the morning? No way…! After taking another sip, the tall man told him with a pleased smile, “Then it’s a good thing I’ve got a comfortable costume in case we do that.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

          “Another job well done, Master Larry,” Alfred said out loud after seeing the superhero capture a simple thief thanks to the body camera he had on his costume. His eyes looked away from that screen and then returned to another one. “Now let’s see the results I’ve gotten for Dormancer…”

          At first, he assumed using a simple Google search would quench his curiosity; however, Alfred had to remind himself that some of the results may be flawed or have no relation to what he searched for. Instead, he narrowed his search down to several local news websites and anything else with more reliable searches.

          Oh, there we go.

          Alfred immediately ceased scrolling the results page when a three month-old article on another city’s news page. “Solanum…? That’s a sister city!” Clicking the link, he felt a sense of familiarity with the peculiar city name. “I _swear_ that I know that name for another reason…”

          The article in question soon popped up, and the Brit began to read it (out loud because why not):

          “For the past few weeks, several attempted crimes were apprehended by an unknown being cloaked in purple who is believed to be another superhero who uses the power of dormancy to accomplish that. At every visit, a blanket was wrapped around the criminals after being tied up with rope. In addition to that,  there is also a golden patch stitched into the blanket which has the words ‘ _Dormancer_ ’. Who is this being? Is there a possibility that our local hero might have some competition or even a potential partner?”

          He sat back against his hover seat in thought, humming for a second as he did so.

          So Dormancer resided in Solanum for a while and then came here? What on earth caused him to leave? Was he chased out by that city’s superhero?

          ...who was that city’s superhero, _anyway_?

          Alfred decided to find out. He straightened himself up with an adjust of his monocle and jacket. “Time to browse the rest of this site until I find out Solanum’s hero is…”

          This task was also simple, thanks to the website’s format, for all Alfred honestly had to do was click on the website’s homepage. From there, the latest article (photo included) greeted him.

          “Oh.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

          Larry carefully slipped inside his warm mansion, all the bags balancing on each other while the owner used his hip to shut the door. He called out as loud as he could, “Honey, I’m home!”

          Alfred soon emerged from the first floor hallway with a bright smile. “Welcome home, Master Larry. Splendid work out there as _always_ ,” he said to him, winking. “Did you need some assistance with those bags?”

          He shook his head. “No thanks. I’ve got it.” With Alfred following him as usual just in case, Larry started his trek up the flight of stairs whilst pulling the bags close to himself before they even _thought_ about tumbling from his hold.

          “Master Larry?”  
          “Yeah Alfred?”

          As they reached the second floor finally, Alfred inquired innocently, “Does this ‘special occasion’ have to do with the costume party tomorrow evening?”

          What?

          Larry glanced over to him with a raised brow whilst he pushed open his door with the help of his hip. “Huh?”

          “I was perusing the internet a while ago,” he explained, “and I discovered that there’s going to be a decade-themed costume party precisely on the thirteenth of March at nine at night and will last until ‘two or three’.”

          “Oh...” With a push of his sliding closet door, Larry sat the bags inside and then shut them within the closet. “W--well, tomorrow’s actually special ‘cause of--”

          “We were going to go there?”  
          “The costume party? Did you wanna?”

          Alfred nodded with a lively smile. “I would like to. I’m honestly surprised you didn’t mention this sooner!”

          ‘ _That’s because I was thinkin’ about something_ else _that’s tomorrow_ ,’ Larry internally replied. Maybe he should try hinting the Brit about what tomorrow also was. “Alfred,” he asked, “doesn’t March thirteen sound like a specific date to you?”

          Alfred took a moment to think, his eyes darting off to the bedroom window as well. Quietly, he gasped once he remembered something. “I was in here earlier and saw that you had a cake sticker plastered there…”

          Larry took a deep breath--

          “So I assumed you wanted to have a birthday cake for dessert, so I’m planning on making it tomorrow morning.”

           _Larry deflated in an instant_.

          Crud, looks like Alfred was gonna forget this year too. Why on earth did this happen? Either Alfred was purposely pretending tomorrow was nothing out of the ordinary, or the British man truly forgot.

          “Alfred,” he said, “are you sure there’s nothing else that happens every March thirteenth?”

          “I’m quite certain, Master Larry,” Alfred replied, much to Larry’s dismay. “Oh, _by the by_ , I’ve read up a bit on Dormancer earlier. I’ll tell you all about it whenever you’d like.” He bowed his head. “I’ll leave you to clean up and whatever else you must do. I’ll be in the living room, meanwhile.”

          The first thing Larry did after Alfred departed and shut the door was sigh loudly.

          “Alfred, it’s--!”

 

 

* * *

 

 

**_March 13_ **

 

* * *

 

 

 

          Larry awoke a few hours earlier than usual since he wanted to make a small breakfast for Alfred’s day of days; however, when he slipped into the kitchen, he saw the Brit at the table with a cup of peppermint tea in his possession. “A--Alfred? How long have you been up?”

          Upon hearing the familiar squeaky voice, Alfred perked up in his seat and turned his head to see Larry standing there, looking a bit confused. “Oh, Master Larry! Well,” he responded as professionally as possible, “I believe I’ve been awake since six. I’ve done whatever chore was necessary, checked on the garden -- by the by, the tulips are beginning to bloom! -- and then came back inside, baked a small cake for us, and made some tea.”

          He blinked. “...how long did you sleep then?”

          “Five hours.”  
          “Oh boy.”  
          “Master Larry, I _assure_ you, I’ve gotten enough sleep last night.”

          “Well okay…” Larry took a seat beside him with a mumble. “Say, Alfred?”

          Before he began to drink more of his tea, Alfred responded with a small, “Yes, Master Larry?”

          Larry suddenly grinned and then whipped something out from his side, placing it in front of Alfred who paused drinking upon seeing the item. “Happy Birthday, Alfie!”

          Alfred gasped from surprise, almost dropping his cup in the process. He took a second to sit the cup on its saucer and then paid attention to both the small present and the words of the one who gave him said gift. “Oh my goodness, today’s my birthday?”

          “ _Yes_ Alfred,” he told him with a pout. “March thirteen is your birthday! How come you keep forgetting every year like this?”

          “I see…” Alfred tugged at the simple red bow atop the golden wrapping paper. “Guess it’s slipped my mind!” He shot an apologetic smile to the superhero. “I apologise for not catching onto your hints.”

          “That’s okay! You wanna open it?”  
          “Why, of course!”

          One bow removal and the rustling of wrapping paper being torn off with care later, Alfred lifted the small lid and his mouth went agape. Alfred gingerly pulled out the item inside and then studied the shimmering piece. It appeared to be a silver bow brooch with a red beryl presenting itself in the middle to him.

          “Oh, Master Larry,” Alfred said, touched as hinted with how gentle his voice became, “this is a _wonderful_ present.”

          “Want me to help ya with it?” When Alfred nodded eagerly, Larry leaned in, taking the brooch from the Brit. “Hey Alfie?”

          Alfred blinked. “Hm?”

          “Do you have a costume for the party tonight?”  
          “Surprisingly, yes!”  
          “Oo, nice! What is it?”  
          At the same time Larry attached the brooch to his jacket, the British man answered with a hint of cheerfulness, “My Tech Whisperer jacket! It fits _well_ for the 80’s!”

          Larry faltered. It took him a bit to recover his voice, but once he did, he spoke in such a quiet, worried tone that it grabbed Alfred’s full attention, “ _Tech Whisperer_ ? Alfred, are you sure you wanna wear that? I--I mean...I--I _know_ it’s been awhile since then, but that’s somethin’ that’s--”

          “Larry,” Alfred dropped the title and matched Larry’s volume in his voice, as he leaned in closer to him with an assuring smile, “I’ll be fine wearing it for a silly little costume party. Thank you for the concern...and for this brooch. I presume that the beryl was the one you received as a reward all those years ago?”

          Bashfully and feeling relieved by the reassurance, he chuckled. “ _Yeah_ , actually!”

          “What did I ever do to be with someone sweet like you?” Alfred rose from his seat, grabbing his cup and saucer. “Would it be alright if we went and ate for breakfast again?”

          “Sure! You get to choose today!”  
          “Lovely! I’ll hurry and get myself dressed. I shan’t be long!”

          And with his drink in hand, the tall man swept himself out of the kitchen while Larry looked on with a grin. Well, as long as Alfred didn’t feel uncomfortable in his attire for tonight, he was fine. Still, it was a surprise that he offered to don that metallic-looking jacket with the colours which screamed “80’s sci-fi fashion” but was also a reminder to his Tech Whisperer days. How long ago was that anyway? Hm.

          Anyway, time to get ready for another breakfast outside the house. Whenever they get back, Larry was certain to give Alfred the other presents he bought for the butler. Not like his parents were going to send over gifts from Cambridgeshire since they despised the Brit.

          The more he remembered that fact, the more Larry hoped that after all of these years that Alfred was happy and living a better life than the one prior to now.

          “Master Larry,” Alfred’s voice called from the living room, “I’m prepared!”

          Larry shot out of his chair upon hearing that. “Okay Alfred! I’ll get dressed in a sec!”

          Well, time to go, and soon...it’ll be time to have fun at the costume party.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

          “I can hear the music all the way out here,” Nezzer immediately said as he and Lunt climbed out of his Cadillac Escalade. “Must be playing it as loud as possible…”

          Lunt, meanwhile, adjusted the pair of black sunglasses and let out a low, impressed whistle. “Lotta cars here too. The place is gonna be _packed_.”

          That was when Nezzer yawned all of a sudden, getting Lunt’s attention.

          “Tired? Didn’t you sleep in?”  
          “I guess I didn’t get enough rest...”

          “Don’t worry, big fella,” he told him, bumping his smaller form against Nezzer and getting a grunt from him as he did so, “they’ve got tons of coffee to keep you up ‘til the party’s over. It’s gonna be a looooong night!”

          Nezzer couldn’t stop himself from frowning just a tad. Coffee around ten at night? No way! _Why_ did Lunt want to stay for the entire party? Oh right, because he’s Lunt, and Lunt liked to party.

          The two men began their trek to the building, and as they did that, the music grew ever-so louder whilst the space between them shrunk more and more. Lunt was the first to start speaking again.

          “So...what’cha got on? It looks sorta 70’s with the pirate shirt and bell bottoms.”

          He glanced to his light purple ruffle shirt and then down to the dark pair of bell bottoms. “Well, yeah…” he replied before looking to Lunt. “Let me guess...90’s?”

          Lunt grinned in reply whilst fixing his shades once again. “Specifically 90’s _r’n’b_. Got the shades, heavy white jacket, matching tank top...even got a necklace for the occasion!” He grabbed the end of his golden chain necklace to show Nezzer.

          Nezzer smiled, amused at the attire. “I’m honestly getting a _Backstreet Boys_ vibe from it.”

          “W--well yeah, that could work. I like ‘em anyway.”  
          “Never would’ve guessed.”

          “Well,” ignoring the blush spreading on his cheeks, Lunt said as he pushed the door open for the both of them, “now you know.”

          Nezzer raised a brow to him. “ _And_ you’re blushing? Never saw that part of you before.”

          “ _Shush_ !”  
          “Heh, I’m sorry…”

          When they entered into the community center’s ballroom, Lunt’s assumption from earlier was proved to be absolutely correct. With the loud, 70’s disco music blasting over the ceiling and corner speakers, people were dancing on the dance floor or mingling at the many, many tables spread about the establishment. A smorgasbord of food laid across multiple buffet tables beside the entrance which Nezzer and Lunt went through, and boy...both of them could smell the various foods’ scent intertwine into a rather delicious one.

          Lunt, for the second time that even, whistled from being impressed. “Listen to that tune we walked in on. Could never go wrong with Bee Gees!” He glanced to Nezzer who was busy taking in on the large number of people who were present at this public event. “Hey Nezzie,” he spoke up loud enough for the zucchini man to hopefully hear him, “let’s head out to the dance floor!”

          Nezzer snapped out of a trance he wasn’t aware he was even in when he heard Lunt’s proposal. “Wh--what? So soon…?”

          “Yeah, they’re playin’ 70’s music, and you’re wearing the costume for it, so you should start flauntin’ around!”  
          “That’s true, but--”

          Nezzer was interrupted, yelping as the small man tugged him off to the dance floor without another word. Now it was his turn for his cheeks to turn crimson in shade. Dancing was something he didn’t plan on doing when he got here, to be honest. That wasn’t his thing, but here he was being dragged by Lunt regardless! He sighed.

          As he was being tugged along, passing tables and other party-goers, Nezzer’s purple eyes caught the sight of a familiar person at one of the tables further in the back.

 

          And the person at that table noticed him as well.

          Once in a while, Larry would look to Alfred and the long, metallic-like jacket and black visor glasses he wore for the event and still felt a fragment of worry that the material mixed with turquoise, green, and purple would secretly unsettle Alfred and simply didn’t want to admit it. Within the hour and thirty minutes they’ve been here, the Brit didn’t display any hints of discomfort so far, so hopefully what Alfred said hours ago was true.

          Neither male didn’t have the courage to go up and join the other participants on the dance floor since they didn’t know how to dance anyway, so all this time, they sat at a table, ate, drank, and talked to each other. All of a sudden, though, Larry spotted a tall figure being led to the dance floor by a small decorative gourd. Wow, the zucchini guy was tall--oh! Those eyes!

          Larry whispered to Alfred, “It’s that guy from yesterday!”

          Alfred pressed a button located on the glasses which caused it to pull back, revealing the butler’s brown eyes. “What ‘guy’, Master Larry?”

          “That zucchini guy,” he replied and then jerked his head forward to the tall zucchini. “I bumped into him while I was gettin’ some food. He’s got some weird purple eyes…” Larry paused for a second, seeing an image of the man’s face in his mind before adding, “they’re hypnotizin’ to look at...”

          He scrunched his eyebrows together. “Purple eyes…?” The cogs began to crank more within the butler’s mind, for the height of the man, the colour of his eyes, and Larry’s choice of word to describe them seemed to remind him of something.

          But _what_ though?

          Alfred pressed the button on his glasses again and made the visor appear. “Master Larry,” he changed the topic, although, he held onto the moment from seconds ago, “I’m surprised you’re not out there dancing.”

          Larry chuckled in an embarrassed tone, explaining as he tugged his red vest over the blue button up and checkered shirt he wore underneath, “I’ll...get up there when they start playin’ stuff from the 80’s since I’m decked up for it. I’m a McFly, not a Manero...” It was now his turn to question, “What about you? I bet’cha you’re smooth out there~!”

          Alfred whipped out a pocket-sized keyboard from his jacket and kept it underneath the table as he replied with a laugh, “Oh, I’m quite the opposite! I don’t know a _thing_ about dancing!”

          Ooh, so he didn’t know either? His bright brown eyes shot to the dance floor as he thought. Wow, it sure looked intimidating being out there with a bunch of strangers, especially while in costume and unable to dance at all, but at least he wouldn’t be alone out there if he brought the taller man with him. They could dance together!

          In a swift movement, Larry pressed his side against Alfred’s, grinning to him. “Wanna head out there and dance with me? I can show ya!”

          Another laugh escaped from him while typing away with one non-existent hand and the other grabbed the newest drink he got from one of the separate tables minutes ago. “Since you’re offering...I don’t see why not!” He took a sip while his eyes looked at the search engine he had on the inside of his visor.

          Oh.

          This...drink sure tasted peculiar; however, it also tasted nice and sweet, so he continued sipping the colourful beverage.

 

          As that was going down…

          “You’re in 70’s attire,” Lunt said, “c’mon and do some disco movies, Nezzie!”

          Nezzer embarrassingly kept the lower portion of his body still on the dance floor as he leaned the other half of himself down to Lunt’s level and feebly explained, “I can’t dance.”

          “What…?! That’s not true! You were dancin’ at the Christmas party you threw back when you still had the pub!”  
          “That was in a place I felt _confident_ in.”

          Lunt huffed, but then he considered something and decided to point it out to the huge man. “Bet’cha there’s not going to be that many later on! Would you feel like dancing then?”

          “I--I guess so,” he replied with a shrug. “Anyway,” Nezzer announced, “I’m going to grab something to eat and sit down until that happens. You’re free to do whatever you want in the meantime.”

          He puffed out his cheeks at Nezzer, but of course, his reaction was waved off by Nezzer as he hopped off to the buffet tables. Ah well, he said he might feel better once the crowd size shrunk to a more suitable size for him. Didn’t want to force the big fella to do something he didn’t want to. Wouldn’t be nice. Besides, Nezzer seemed okay to staying the entire time instead of leaving mid-way through the party, so the least he could do was make Nezzer’s time as enjoyable as possible.

          ...oh dang, was that the start of “Ring My Bell”?

          Lunt suddenly called out, although he had a feeling Nezzer would hear him over the music and thanks to the long distance between them, “Okay, you’re missing out though!”

          Nezzer could’ve sworn he heard Lunt telling him he was “missing out” on the song beginning to play next, but he couldn’t really tell from here as he grabbed a paper plate and started to browse the various foods which this party had to offer. Popcorn, Mister Twisty, pretzels...wait, were those Pop Rocks? Okay, next bowl…

          After filling his plate with as much stuff as he could, he approached the drinks section which was almost deserted except for one asparagus man who donned a _very 80’s_ jacket and sunglasses. Wow, sci-fi much…?

          Nezzer reached the table while the wobbling man used a ladle to fill his glass with a rainbow coloured drink. He couldn’t help but ask with knitted brows, “Are you okay?”

          The man pressed an apparent button located on the right of his sunglasses and, to Nezzer’s surprise, the shades retreated, revealing the man’s eyes. He glanced at him with an unsteady, but cheerful, grin to accompany it. “I’m _certainly_ all right, thank you! In fact, having a few glasses of this unusual drink is making me unwind,” he confessed, “along with it being my birthday today which I somehow forgot again!”

          There was a familiar smell coming from the British (well, that’s what he was guessing with that accent) man’s breath and the bowl that had the multi-colored beverage contained.

          “So you have _no idea_ what this drink is.”  
          “No. I said I wasn’t, but that’s fine! It’s rather enjoyable regardless!”

          ‘ _Rainbow cocktail_ ,’ he answered in his mind. Good grief, they were serving alcohol here?! Hopefully this Alfred fella wasn’t driving home once he left. Then, there was another thing Nezzer noticed...the rings under the Brit’s eyes. Yikes. “You seem tired. Have you been getting enough sleep?”

          A laugh bubbled from him upon hearing that. “Oh you sound _just like_ Master Larry saying that!”

          He blinked. “Master...Larry?”

          The tipsy man tilted his head back and took a gulp of his newly acquired drink with a muffled “mm-hm” before he returned his gaze to Nezzer. “I’ve been with him for many years now,” he revealed as his posh voice grew quiet all of a sudden, “and I owe him _so much_ for what’s he’s done for me. The least I could do is call him a high title such as that and be his butler.”

          ‘ _Hold on_ ,’ Nezzer thought, ‘ _this is the same fella who’s sharing a table with that cucumber who ran into me yesterday! He must be his butler..._ ’

           _Sob!_

          “Oh bother,” the Brit spoke and then choked out an oncoming sob yet again, “I--I think the drink is making me vulnerable to sudden mood swings! Alfred, you big _baby_!” Hurriedly, he pushed the button on his visor and forced it back in place and then guzzled the rest of his drink just in case he began to weep like a child in front of a stranger.

          ...should he try it here? Should he really?

          Well, mood swings could occur if one didn’t get much sleep...that was the experience _he_ had, anyway. He should do something about this scene.

          Within his left pocket, Nezzer pulled the amulet closer to his body, preparing to summon something while he said to the man beside him, “You know, with the state you’re in, maybe you should take a nice long--”

          “A--anyway!” The man in question appeared to be attempting to change the topic in order to distract himself from possible crying, “I’ve noticed that your eyes appear to be purple. Are those natural by any chance?”

          Nezzer blinked at the random question, but nonetheless, he answered through an unexpected yawn, “Yes?”

          Alfred shook his head clear, forcing himself to shove away the rocky emotions that he was going through thanks to the delicious drinks, then he pressed the visor button so he could look at Nezzer better. “That’s,” _sniff_ , “interesting…” He sniffed once more. “I hope you don’t mind me asking that. I was just being inquisitive because I was reading on a superhero by the name of ‘Dormancer’ yesterday, and your eyes reminded me of an eyewitness description of him!”

          Nezzer realized that his body froze upon hearing the name drop of the dormancy hero; however, he wasn’t shocked, but rather surprised by it. “Dormancer huh.”

          Alfred poured himself another glass of rainbow cocktail as he told the zucchini man, “Dormancer seemed to arouse curiosity in Master Larry and me, so…” he paused to gulp half of the fresh drink down his awaiting mouth and then continued his blabbering, though his voice sounded slurred “I read up on what he looked like and the city he apparently resided in before moving to Bumblyburg! I didn’t read a recent article about his time in Solanum yet, but I’m planning to tomorrow.”

          As he observed the younger man’s face, a sleepy smile graced Nezzer’s features. Ooh, this Alfred was intoxicated and going through numerous things all at once. His mind might be going fuddled soon and he still believed those rings under the Brit’s eyes were a sign of lack of sleep, so why not do something about it?

          And while _this_ was happening…

 

          Wow, Alfred sure was at the tables for a while, wasn’t he? Larry kept glancing between where Alfred hopped off to and then at the dance floor and whenever they went to the Brit, he saw Alfred talking to that tall zucchini fella in the 70’s attire. What could they be talking about for so long?

          One of his phones vibrated without warning and caused the young superhero to jump in his seat with a surprised squeak. Instinctively, Larry whipped out the cellphone he used for any superhero business and checked it. Oh, a text from...S-Cape?

           _I see you~ >;0D _ , it read. _Look ahead!_

          Larry gasped. He followed what the text said and saw the decorative gourd decked in 90’s boy band clothes waving at him with S-Cape’s cellphone. He grinned widely and waved back with his own mobile device. (Good thing civilians have never seen the phones or connected the dots considering the color schemes matched the superhero they belonged to.)

          Larry shot his head back to his phone then asked via text, _Lunt?? How come you’re here? ( 8B_

 _I’m on vacation, sunshine!_ _  
_ _Wanna come over here?_

          “Way ahead of you,” Lunt’s voice tickled the back of his neck which, in response, made the cucumber jump again with a squeaked cry and spin around in his seat to partly face him. “ ‘sup.”

          Larry pouted at the gourd. “What’d you do _that_ for?”

          “Wanted to make a good transition from textin’ to talking face to face,” was his answer as he took a seat beside him. “Where’s Alfred?”

          The pout immediately vanished upon hearing the butler’s name and was replaced with a smile while he jerked his head to the right. “At the drink table. You alone?”

          “Nah, I’m with a close friend, but I lost him in the crowd of people where the food is. Didn’t wanna dance yet.”  
          “Are you supposed to be a 90’s boy band member?”  
          “...well a 90’s _r’n’b_ boy band member to be precise, _McFly_.”

 

          He was ready, all he had to do was distract this intoxicated man before him. Alfred was getting disoriented by the second, so saying the following to him without his sleepy smile faltering was no worry to Nezzer at all: “I’ve heard that Dormancer can be lured out by stubborn people who refuse to sleep. He uses a mobile, sometimes his purple eyes can send even an insomniac into some much needed rest…”

          Through the heat which began to worsen by the second due to the alcohol finally taking a complete hold of his body, Alfred stared up at him with his mouth slightly agape. His brown eyes were unstable, shifting left to right as he listened on. Was...was this man hinting that he--?

          “But another method, _I’ve heard_ , that he uses to get his way,” Nezzer lowered his voice, leaned in closer to the Brit, and felt the familiar mist starting to circle his “feet”, “is an intimidating-lookin’ mist that actually is gentle and cradles as many people as possible to...well, you know, Alfred.”

          Bother, it was getting hard to speak, but darn it...Alfred tried his best in his drunken stupor; however, as soon as he made a small confused “what”, his stomach lurched and something shot up to his throat. Right away, he knew what was going to happen next if he didn’t make it to the nearest toilet.

          He ran off, zooming past the chattering Lunt and Larry who immediately noticed what was going on with him.

          Lunt glanced at Larry. “I’m guessin’ Alfred had a lot of this party’s ‘special’ drinks.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

          Larry pushed open the bathroom door and the first sound he was greeted with was Alfred coughing in one of the five stalls. Well, this was gonna be gross, but Larry had to make sure he was okay. “Alfred?” He hopped further in whilst Lunt followed inside, tugging at his jacket.

          “O--oh, Master--” Alfred interrupted himself by coughing more, once he was through, he tried again, “Master Larry, I--I’ve made a grave error about the drinks I’ve had tonight…”

          Lunt spoke up next as he approached the only closed stall, “Rainbow cocktails, buddy. You didn’t _know_ they were gonna serve all kinds of drinks?”

          “Mister...Lunt? What are you even doing here--no wait, I thought it was a family-friendly event!”  
          “Well I mean, there’s kids still here ‘n’ all, but you know how restaurants and the like serve them regardless.”

           **_Clunk_** , Alfred allowed his head to bump against, by the sound of it, the stall wall and groaned soon after.

          Larry joined the two with a small frown. “Wanna go home, Alfred?”

           **_Fwoosh_** , the toilet flushed. Alfred, meanwhile, weakly struggled off his knees, wiping his mouth with a piece of toilet paper. “B--but Master Larry,” he whined as he pulled back the stall door, “the _party_! And our dance!”

          Over the creaking of the bathroom door being opened again, the cucumber assured him, “It’s okay. You’re not looking so well anyway,” he pointed out, referring to how pale Alfred became after doing his business in the toilet.

          “Well...alright.”  
          “No worries, I’ll drive!”

          The three turned, prepared to depart, but they paused when a small, yellow tomato donning a flower necklace, brown vest, and matching flower crown was standing there. He was obviously in costume as a “flower child” of the 60’s. What was weird, though, was what he said.

          “You might not wanna go out there.”

          “I’ll take the plunge,” Lunt said to Alfred and Larry. His eyes went to the kid and asked, “How come?”

          He fiddled with the peace sign necklace but kept his big eyes on them. “Dormancer’s using his sleeping powers out there and it might knock you out.”

          As he felt the wobbly Alfred lean against him, Larry scrunched his brows at the given information. “Dormancer’s a good guy though.”

          The kid shook his head. “Not really.”

          Lunt bit his lip from the sudden realization. “Shoot, Nezzie’s out there too!” He glanced up at Larry, questioning, “Need to ‘use the bathroom’ real quick?”

          Larry blinked. “Um, not really, no--”

          It was Alfred’s turn to speak, “Master Larry...it’s a _hint_.”

          “Oh.” He then nodded to Lunt.

 

* * *

 

 

 

          You know, it’s amazing how much you can overhear people chit-chat even with a bunch of 80’s music bursting from every which way; however, after Alfred ran off to deposit his stomach contents in the nearest bathroom, this was what Nezzer was able to do.

          A lot of these people sure seemed to enjoy talking about staying up all night, and that bugged Nezzer. As someone who struggled to sleep, to see these folks brag about how long they would stayed up struck a nerve. Besides that, sleeping was good for the body! Why waste it?

          He was planning on using this on Alfred since he was well aware whom he worked for, but these people, especially the ones having similar drinks to the one which the British man guzzled down like water... _they needed it more_.

          Nezzer prayed that Lunt was, at least, out of the room for a second. He could’ve _sworn_ he saw him head into the bathroom wasn’t completely certain.

          There, at the very corner by the doors, was a set of curtains...a rather conveniently placed set, mind you, that was large and thick enough to hide in without being seen. The tall man knew he was going to need it in order to change into something more...comfortable for the occasion.

          Left and right, right and left, he dodged people as he made his trek to his destination while he planned on how everything was going to go. After all, he wasn’t the type to jump in without a second thought, _goodness_ no.

          Aaaand, there.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

          “Who is that kid anyway?”  
          “I dunno. Sure knows a bit about Dormancer.”

          Alfred continued to recover from his intoxication by leaning carefully against the sink beside the flower child. Usually, there’d be a bit of a panic about a civilian being around while the heroes changed into their gear, but Alfred...well, something about this kid made him think the child wasn’t a mere civilian. He removed the visor from his eyes and put it away in an inner breast pocket of his jacket. “Excuse me,” he spoke to the kid, “how do you know about the Dormancer?”

          He was still fiddling with his necklace as he answered Alfred, “He used to live in Solanum. That’s where I’m from, Alfred.”

          Alfred stood up straight. “How...how do you know my name--”

          That was when two new figures burst out of the bathroom stalls, dressed from heel to toe in flashy gear.

          “LarryBoy is here!”  
          “And so is S-Cape!”

          S-Cape looked to LarryBoy, saying, “Dormancer’s crashin’ a party that I was anticipating all _night_ ! I was totally prepped for Backstreet Boys, Boyz 2 Men, _and_ Britney Spears for the love of Pete!”

          LarryBoy, in a flash, was at the door and pressed it open a bit, enough for him to take a peep. He gasped. Holy smokes! “Not only that, but everybody’s passed out on the floor and there’s a purple mist out there or somethin’!”

          “Let’s go, LarryBoy! We gotta rush in! Cover your mouth just in case!”  
          “Got’cha, S-Cape!”

          LarryBoy quickly wrapped his emergency cape over his shoulders whilst S-Cape pulled his own by the hem in order to cover his mouth. Once LarryBoy followed suit, off they went into the strange area and leaving Alfred alone with...uh, what’s this kid’s name anyway?

          “Little boy,” Alfred looked down to the boy and inquired, “who _are_ you?”

          A small smile crossed his face. “Joe.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

          This was pretty creepy. In fact, it looked like an unsettling graveyard set for Halloween. Within the mist, bodies upon bodies laid about the once lively ballroom, even the DJ was slumped back against the wall behind him, but as LarryBoy approached one civilan’s body, he was reminded that these people were not dead, for his chest expanded and reduced in size while a few others next to his body snored loud enough for the hero to hear over the music that continued playing.

          “I don’t see ‘im,” S-Cape broke the silence between the two as he took a few cautious hops forward. “Did he leave already?”

          LarryBoy shrugged. “I--I don’t know…”

          “Lemme try pulling my cape down.”  
          “Hold on, are you sure?”

          “Jus’ for a sec,” S-Cape assured him. As slow as possible, the decorative gourd pulled the cape down from his mouth. “I smell somethin’...it’s sorta like a gingerbread man.” He sniffed twice to test if he’d breathe alright without his trusty cape. Nope, not sleepy. He allowed the cape to return to its natural position. “Huh. Guess you gotta get hit with it for it to work.”

          LarryBoy dropped the hold on his cape as well with a sigh. “So what happened to Dormancer if it really _is_ him?”

           **_Ding-a-ling-ling_ ** ... wind chimes rung, and both superheroes caught onto the sound. Why would there be wind chimes _inside_ a building though? Well, neither guy saw one when they arrived at the ballroom a while ago. Not only that, but the sounds appeared to be coming from the entrance of the room where the purple mist grew heavier and dense.

          Even though he only searched a bit, S-Cape was getting both anxious and peeved. Where was Dormancer and what happened to Nezzer?! Good grief, he was torn between those two things! “Hey,” he called as loud as he could, “would you get out here already, Dormancer?! Show yourself!”

          Suddenly, a deep voice spoke, a voice which managed to run a shiver down the two superheroes’ spine, “ _Well don’t_ you _sound cranky! Maybe you should take a nice rest with everyone else._ ”

          LarryBoy attempted to say something next as he stood his ground, “Dormancer, why did you do this? What kinda harm were these innocent civilians caused you?”

          “They wouldn’t keep quiet about staying awake and being proud of it, so I decided that they should nap regardless. They should be awake by ten or ten-thirty, though. Don’t worry.”

          The superheroes shot each other a look, both of them raising a brow in question.

          S-Cape huffed. “You serious? You’re gonna take the role of a parent? Look buddy, just stick to knocking out bad guys. It makes a lot more sense--”

          In an instant, a tall -- _very_ tall -- figure hovered over him, dressed in a long, flowing cloak which fluttered freely in the misty air. The hood of the cloak managed to keep the figure’s face a secret, but faintly, S-Cape saw a stunning pair of purple eyes boring into his own...and forcing his body still. Because of that, the superhero made a small “nyeee!” at this situation. Dang, he couldn’t escape out of _this_ situation!

          “It would make ‘a lot more sense’ if you knew that sleep is very important to me,” the figure calmly said; although the sudden grip he had on S-Cape’s collar with his staff was anything but calm, “very, _very_ important--”

          A plunger latched onto the staff and the figure, Dormancer, turned to see where it came from.

          Bumblyburg’s own LarryBoy was there, tugging roughly at the staff with his super-suction plunger ears. Such a tough grip! But, Dormancer wasn’t going to allow this little pup to win the game of tug-of-war. The cloaked being pulled as a hard as he could with a loud grunt. The yank was strong enough to send LarryBoy over with a yelp. Dormancer caught him in a hold, using his free “hand”. You know what I mean.

          Almost sounded confused, Dormancer commented to the two captured heroes, “You didn’t think this through, did you?”

          LarryBoy squirmed back and forth, even when the bottom of his “feet” were no where near the ground below, and then chuckled embarrassingly. “Maybe not.’

          S-Cape shot him a judgemental stare. “Man, are you seriously about to have a casual conversation with a guy who could _put you to sleep in a blink of an eye_ apparently?”

          “Ohh,” Dormancer pulled S-Cape closer to him and then did the same to LarryBoy, “my magic is _more_ than making you fall asleep quickly. I can control how long you sleep and with whatever method I see fit. Like now, for example,” he tugged them closer, causing them to yelp in unison, “I think I’ll use my mobile since you looked curious about it earlier. That should keep you two under for ten hours or so.”

          The jingling of the mobile on Dormancer’s staff after its owner announced what was going to happen was probably the reason why S-Cape and LarryBoy wiggled, grunted, and whatever else in order to get out of this situation and apprehend him.

          “Hmm...maybe I should use my mist since it’s still around from earlier. I think I can wind it up again for you two.”

          All of a sudden and from out of nowhere, a fourth voice shouted, “How about you do _none_ of them!”

          Dormancer felt something small but heavy strike against his back without warning which forced him to release his hold on the two superheroes. As the purple-donning being fell backwards, he was met with the determined face of--

          LarryBoy gasped. “Thingamabob!”

          S-Cape couldn’t help but point out, “Funny how superheroes are poppin’ out left and right tonight huh?”

          But Dormancer ignored the commentary and simply stared back at the small tomato superhero with a sleepy frown. Wait a moment, were those...police sirens growing louder and closer to the community center? Oh boy, did he have the nerve to summon the police? This Thingamabob was too much. “Nice seeing you again, Thingamabob. Goodnight,” was all he said before **_poof_ **!

          Dormancer, the chiming, and the ominous-looking mist disappeared before the man had a chance to crash onto the hard floor.

          Meanwhile, Thingamabob used his quick robotic limbs to lower himself down to the ground and then allowed them to rest as he approached the recovering S-Cape and LarryBoy. “S-Cape, LB,” he finally spoke to his fellow superheroes, “are you okay?”

          “You’ve got the best timing ever,” S-Cape replied.

          But for LarryBoy, he noticed what Dormancer said. “Nice seeing you _again_ ”...? He furrowed his brows for a second but then shoved away the thoughts for now and answer Thingamabob, “Y--yeah. Thanks, Thingamabob.”

          The bathroom door suddenly creaked open, and out came Alfred and Joe.

          The first thing which the British butler said upon exiting was, “Well... _this_ was an eventful birthday…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :o


	3. March 13 (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, that dance party was a bust, but hey...something interesting makes up for it! What could it be?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The original chapter 3 was getting pretty long, so it's going to be split into "March 13 Part 2" and "March 13 Part 3". This part is going to be a bit of a breather (plot-wise), and the second part will be up later this month. :B

* * *

 

 

         The two police cars pulled up to the Bumblyburg Community Center not long after all traces of Dormancer vanished into the night air, and once the officers hurried into the building, they were surprised by the sight of what was in the ballroom.

         Bodies among bodies of costume-wearing people while a 90’s pop song smoothly played on the speakers even as the DJ in the corner was also knocked out and propped against the wall.

         Officer Scooter was the first to speak, “ _Sweet_ mothers of Backstreet Boys!”

         “Officer Scooter?”

         The older man turned to his left and saw LarryBoy moving towards him. “LarryBoy! What on earth happened?!”

         LarryBoy glanced off to the side for a moment, over to where Alfred and Joe were standing and then returned his brown eyes to Officer Scooter. “It was Dormancer. He was here earlier and made everybody fall asleep!”

         “So they _are_ asleep like that Thingamabob lad mentioned over the phone…” He muttered in surprise. “ _How_ did this ‘appen exactly?”

         And that was when LarryBoy began to give him the only info he had which was basically, Dormancer showed up and used a sleeping mist on the group of people.

 

 

 

         While LarryBoy informed the mustachioed carrot, Alfred emerged from the restroom with a groan before slowly hopping to the table Lunt and Joe were. Lunt, of course, had changed out of his S-Cape attire and returned to his dear 90’s costume and was currently busy staring at his cellphone in anticipation. Alfred had to dodge a few of the medical crew who just arrived to take the slumbering civilians to a much more comfortable place, but soon he reached the table and sat between Joe and Lunt.

         “I’m going to avoid drinking anything that isn’t water, coffee, or tea for a while,” Alfred feebly said out loud. His eyes trailed to Lunt whilst the decorative gourd suddenly perked up in his seat. “Did you ever find your friend, Mister Lunt?”

         “Just got a text from him,” he replied with a half-smile, though his eyes remained on the phone. “He had to step outside for a bit for a phone call. Managed to get out of here before Dormancer showed up.”

         “Thank goodness. Was there a possibility that he could’ve seen him entering the building?”  
         “Asked that. He said he saw nothin’.”   
         “I guess I’m not surprised…”

         Lunt shoved his phone into his coat pocket as he glanced over at Joe. “Hey kid,” he asked, “are your parents lying around here?” He nudged his head to the floor ahead.

         Joe paused from playing with his necklace, his eyes going from the accessory to Lunt. “No.”

         Alfred worriedly inquired next, “Joe, where are your parents?”

         Immediately, he replied, “Outside.”

         “Alright...then, how do you know who I am?”  
         “You know my dad.”

         Alfred blinked, his brows knitting together. “What…?”

 

 

 

         “And he said they’d be awake by ten or ten-thirty,” LarryBoy concluded. He honestly felt conflicted about all of this. Dormancer stopped two guys from stealing harmlessly, but then went and lured a room full of harmless party-goers into a state of...what was that word that Alfred used? Oh, right... _dormancy_. “As soon as Thingamabob got here, he poofed away!”

         The officer puffed which caused his mustache to flip up for a second while he scanned the ballroom. He’s seen plenty -- and I mean _plenty_ considering this was Bumblyburg -- of odd goings-on, but making people fall asleep at the drop of the hat? Ridiculous! “I see,” he murmured as another stretcher with a slumbering person was carted past him and out the ballroom. “How come you’re not sleepin’ like a wee baby like the rest of ‘em?”

         Before he could answer Officer Scooter’s question, he was interrupted by a familiar voice approaching them, responding, “You have to be present as soon as he uses his mist. LB was in another location when Dormancer used it, and by the time he popped out, the mist’s strength depleted.”

         The costumed superhero looked to his left and saw Thingamabob standing there, glancing at Officer Scooter. “Yeah,” he agreed with a nod, “what he said.” Suddenly, he leaned down to the tomato’s height and whispered, “That means it got weak, right?”

         He blinked but then answered back in equal volume, “Y--yes. It shrunk in strength.”

         “Oh.”

         Officer Scooter spoke up again, grabbing the attention of the two heroes, “And neither of you or yer friends over there know where the Boogey Man went?”

         LarryBoy sighed. “No.”

         “ ‘fraid not,” was Thingamabob’s reply; however, he added for assurance, “but I know enough about him to know what’s going on. He’ll only do this sort of act when he feels as though they need to sleep which was rare for the most part. He focuses more on stopping crime.”

         The Bumblyburg hero turned to him. “So is Dormancer a good guy, or a bad guy?”

         “I...I’m not sure, LB.”  
         “Could you at least tell me how you know about Dormancer?”   
         “Well, he--”

         That was when another officer approached and whispered something into Officer Scooter’s ear. The mustachioed officer nodded and with the nudge of his head, urged his fellow law enforcer to go ahead and head outside. “We’ve got everybody out of the place. If there’s nothin’ else you oughta let us know about, we’ll be leaving now,” he announced. Before the two had a chance to tell him anything else which could assist, Officer Scooter hopped out of the ballroom, leaving the small group to themselves.

         Thingamabob huffed. “Well I _was_ about to say something else…”

         Lunt soon approached them, his cellphone out in the open. “You guys still need me, or should I go?”

         LarryBoy made a small, apologetic smile. “You can go, Lunt. We’re kinda at a standstill about Dormancer. Doesn’t help that he can poof around. Sorry about the party...”

         “Nah, ain’t your fault, sunshine. Next time I run into Dormancer though,” he said, “I’m gonna go ‘ _Tony! Toni! Toné!_ ’ on his butt for ruining the party like that!” Lunt was about to leave, but then remembered something.

         That little tomato kid was still at the table with Alfred, talking to the worn-out butler. He was about to say something, but Lunt ended up leaving them to check up on LarryBoy and Thingamabob. What the heck could he be saying?

         He shrugged and finally left, squeezing his small form between them instead of going around them. He needed to see if Nezzer really _was_ okay. If the huge fella felt like it, maybe they could visit one of those “decade-themed” restaurants for a munch…

         A sigh escaped Thingamabob. “Good grief, I thought Dormancer got bored and just decided to quit. I wish I could’ve known sooner that he planned on moving elsewhere…”

         “Aw, Thingamabob…” LarryBoy tugged off his mask, reassuring the short male, “it’s okay. No one got hurt! He said they were gonna wake up later today, so all we can do now is wait and see!”

         “Yeah, I know, but…”  
         “...would headin' to my place for some ice cream help? My treat.”  
         “I _guess_ I could go for some ice cream. Thanks, Larry.”

         Hold on, what? Lunt was the only member of the “League of Incredible Vegetables” who knew his out-of-costume name! (What? Lunt asked and offered to tell him who _he_ was. Only fair…) How on earth did Thingamabob know?

         Oddly enough, after that blurt of his name, Thingamabob’s body froze with a muted gasp to accompany it which really confused LarryBoy. He couldn’t tell what it was, but to him it looked like...like panicked thoughts were running amuck throughout his mind. Why though?

         “Thingamabob? You okay?”

         The tomato snapped out of his frantic thoughts and looked up at LarryBoy. “W--well, I...I...gotta go to the bathroom,” almost rushed, he said that as he darted past the squeaky-voiced hero and into the restroom.

         LarryBoy was very baffled...more than usual anyway.

         Uh, wait...why was that kid still there?

         LarryBoy, uncertain of what to do next, hopped over to the table where Joe and Alfred were. “Um, so…” he paused to clear his throat with a slight cough, “where are your parents?”

         Joe blinked. “Here.”

         He tilted his head at the reply. “What?”

          **_Splash splash!_ **

         And with that loud splashing from the bathroom, LarryBoy turned his attention elsewhere. Oh boy, was Bob getting sick too? He looked to Alfred, winking. “I’ll be right back. After this is resolved, we’ll head on home.”

         “Uh--” Alfred didn’t finish what he wanted to say, for the one he attempted to speak with zipped off to the bathroom.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         “You moron, why did you do _that_ ,” he scolded himself before he tossed some more cold water into his face.

         I have no idea how exactly he did that due to the lack of hands but here he was, doing just that.

         Okay, he calmed down.

         The automatic sink shut itself off once he didn’t need to use it anymore, and the superhero of Solanum was left with absolute silence in the public restroom of a community center at night. He left out a huff as his eyes chose to look at his reflection.

         Boy, this night couldn’t turn any worse.

         Well, time to put this mask back on--

         “Are you okay--?”

         He spun to the door and saw the mask-less LarryBoy standing there. At the same time, both men froze with different reasons. For him, it was the feeling of being caught; however, for LarryBoy, it was pure surprise.

         Larry didn’t realize his mouth was open until he squeaked, “Bob...?” Goodness, he could recognize those blue eyes anyplace!

         Bob Toma, typically known as just Bob, felt his mouth retreat into a thin line while the hold he had on his Thingamabob mask slipped and plopped onto the floor underneath him.

         Shoot, what should he say? What should he say?!

         The left part of his mouth quirked upwards as, hesitantly, he responded at last, “H--hey Larry.” A nervous smile showed itself. “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

         A surprising reaction to Bob, but Larry smiled widely with his buck teeth (or tooth -- it’s hard to tell) sticking out. “My old boss Bob!” He hopped closer to the small man. “I never would’ve guessed _you_ were Thingamabob.”

         He frowned. “I used a term that has my name at the end. I’m surprised you didn’t make the connection sooner…”

         The smile wrapped into a sly grin. “You mean like you did with me years ago?”

         Bob blushed from embarrassment, but before he could respond, the bathroom door creaked open and entered Alfred and Joe. The small tomato child went over to Bob while whipping off his flower crown.

         Joe immediately asked, “Are you okay, Dad?”

         Larry gasped and then whispered from the second surprise, “Possible character development?”

         Bob looked down to Joe with a small smile forming. “I’ll be fine, don’t worry. Just a minor anxiety attack.”

         Larry, meanwhile, looked over his shoulder at Alfred. “Psst, Alfred...it’s my boss from Daily Bumble! He’s Thingamabob--” he paused when he noticed how sickly the British man still appeared. “Alfred…?”

         The butler, though, simply laughed lightly as he propped himself against Larry’s shorter form. “Amazing how the one who wanted to expose you so much became a superhero himself... _and_ has a child, to boot.”

         …

         All of a sudden, Alfred whipped out a tissue from his metallic-looking jacket and covered it over his mouth in such a rush. “A--ah, excuse me for a moment…” he announced and then darted into a bathroom stall, shutting the door behind him.

         Over the sudden sounds of the British butler coughing yet again in the restroom, Bob was still recovering from being caught without his mask and allowed his head to bonk against the nearest wall while Larry worriedly stared at the stall Alfred was occupying.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         “So Dormancer really was in there?”

         “Apparently,” Lunt replied over the funky 90’s r&b music with a huff as he fell back against the passenger seat with an unimpressed frown. If he had arms, he would’ve been crossing them by now...and probably crossing one leg over the other for further display of his discontent due to what happened.

         Nezzer hummed briefly, his eyes not tearing away from the moderate traffic he drove through. “Are you okay? _Physically_ , I mean.”

         “Yeah, I’m fine in that way, but I’m _still_ peeved that he even did it in the first place!” Once again, he huffed. “Floatin’ around in there like he’s Peter Pan or somethin’ and talking about how ‘sleep is important and good for you’ and whatever like he was my _mom_!” He didn’t stop there, though, Lunt continued complaining about the uninviting encounter, “Dang, his whole appearance was dumb! Like...can you imagine taking yourself seriously when you’re paradin’ in an oversized blanket? No wonder the guy covered his face! Probably too embarrassed to show what he looks like. Either that,” he added, “or he was ugly as sin. Bet’cha that’s why.”

         The car paused at a red light and a low, irritated sigh followed the motion.

         Lunt glanced over and saw that Nezzer seemed rather irritated but kept his gentle eyes straight ahead regardless. Oh, and the vegan-friendly leather wheel made a squeak as though the grip on it was tightening by the second...sure looked like it was, too. He quirked a brow as he finally pulled off his shades he wore for the party. “You okay?”

         Nezzer’s eyes softened. Well, he shouldn’t be surprised that Lunt was smack-talking him, but still, the words were taking perfect jabs at him. For one thing, what on earth did he mean by his appearance was “dumb”?! It managed to scare lots of people prior to this confrontation. Maybe this was Lunt simply suppressing how he actually felt about the situation and was more bitter about the costume party being a bust.

         Yeah, that was it. He shouldn’t take the comments personally.

         “It’s nothing, Lunt.”  
         “Y’sure? Looking a bit grumpy to me.”   
         “...I--I’m not.”

         Lunt glanced to the street. Yep, the light’s still red. With his eyes returning to the tall man, he said with a smirk, “I know how to get rid of _that_ attitude…”

         “Whatever it is,” Nezzer told him, “you can use it on yourself since you were crabby a minute ago--”

         “Too late!”

         The next thing Nezzer knew, that rapscallion lunged himself to his seat and began to tickle at his large sides which immediately threw him into a fit of laughter the more he felt the ticklish parts of himself being tampered with by Lunt. I know you’re probably asking yourself how the heck this is happening due to the lack of hands and fingers, but...just go with it.

         As the tickle torture continued, Lunt chuckled through Nezzer’s sudden guffaws, “Feeling better now, big fella?”

         “Okay okay,” he laughed out with flushed cheeks, “I’m fine now!” Nezzer could feel Lunt returning to his seat with a snicker and, upon his energy and breath returning to their normal state, wiped at his eyes just in time for the traffic light to turn green. Nezzer began to drive again as he coughed in order to clear his throat. “A--anyway, where to again?”

         Lunt placed the sunglasses back on his awaiting face. “A 50s diner. I asked my phone to find one for us while I was getting my costume back on.”

         He raised a brow. “Why are you still wearing that?”

         “Because this was what I plannin’ on wearin’ the entire night until you-know-who.”  
         “Oh.”   
         “...that, and because I forgot to bring spare clothes with me.”

         Nezzer couldn’t help but chuckle at the additional reason. Well, looks like they might be staying up, even if it wasn’t something he was a huge fan of, obviously.

         Lunt jolted a bit in his seat when his phone suddenly buzzed. Which phone? He had, like, two or three of them. He whipped out his personal cell phone first. Nope. Shoot, hopefully nothing was going on at home. Out came his S-Cape mobile. It was a text from good ol’ sunshine. Let’s see what it said…

         [ _Thingamabob said there’s nothing we can really do about Dormancer because he’s “untraceable”, but he “rarely does anything” to innocent civilians. He’s mainly a “takes down the bad guys first” type. :B_ ]

         ‘ _Guess he ain’t a good guy though_ ,’ Lunt commented in his head and then replied back via text: [ _This guy is confusing as HECK man. Seriously who wants to put people to sleep because it’s past their bedtime? Sounds like what my mom was like to me as a kid. >:0( _ ]

         Larry simply replied with, [ _Heeheehee..._ ]

         A snort escaped him. Aw, how cute. He giggled at what he said. [ _You know somethin_ ,] he said back, [ _you’re cutesy for a superhero_. ]

         In an instant, Lunt was greeted with: [ _ >:’B !!!!!!!!!!! I’M NOT CUTE! _ ]

         Lunt wouldn’t be surprised if the cucumber was pouting when he typed that. [ _ANYWAY_ , he told Larry, [ _g’night. Let me know if you need me, sunshine. I’ll be sticking around Bumblyburg for a bit. Vacation time._ ]

         [ _Okay...goodnight. :B Hey how come you’ve been calling me sunshine anywho?_ ]

         [ _It reflects your personality in and out of costume. You light up the whole place. ;0)_ ]

         [ _Ohhh...goodnight!_ ]   
         [ _‘night._ ]

 

* * *

 

 

         Larry, now in his Marty McFly costume again, stepped out of the stall while he stashed the phone into his vest pocket. His brown eyes watched as Alfred tiredly wiped at his face with a soaked paper towel and observing himself in the mirror. Man, poor Alfred didn’t look so well. They should head home now so he could rest.

         Alfred sighed gloomily before tossing the used towel into the trash bin beside him and then whipped out his monocle from his coat and returned the eyepiece to its home on his face. “Oh Master Larry,” he spoke, then turned to the shorter man, “I apologise for breaking the mood like that.”

         He blinked, taken aback by the apology which wasn’t needed at all; however, Larry smiled halfway and approached him. “Nah, it’s okay Alfred.”

         “But...don’t you realise what just happened moments ago? We’ve just discovered that Thingamabob is your old boss from _Daily Bumble_ ! We could’ve been focusing more on that rather than me vomiting due to my unfortunate -- _and_ rather careless -- beverage consumption!”

         Larry was quiet for a second, taking in what the butler said as his eyes trailed to the restroom entrance. Bob had excused himself back to the ballroom with Joe following behind his dad. Doing what, Larry was not certain.

         ...Thingamabob was Bob, and Bob was Thingamabob.

          _Man_ , his mind was blown...

         “I think…” Alfred spoke up again, snapping the cucumber out of his thoughts, “I think I’m going to begin to change out of this attire since the party came to a premature end.”

         He frowned. “Aw, ya sure?”

         The tall Brit smiled with a nod. “It would be for the best. I might take a bit to get myself suited to depart from here. Perhaps you could check on Bob and Joe?”

         “Well...okay. I’ll meet you out there.”  
         “Thank you, Master Larry.”

         ‘ _I’m surprised we haven’t been tossed out of the community centre yet_ ,’ Alfred randomly thought as Larry hopped out of the bathroom, humming the theme to “Back to the Future” to himself. He returned his attention to the mirror in front of him.

         ...goodness, he still appeared ragged...and a slight pale.

         His chocolate-coloured eyes trickled down to the silly jacket he donned. It was strange, the sensation he felt the more he stared at it. Hours prior, he didn’t feel this way, so he had an assumption it was the cruel effect of those drinks he guzzled by the moment.

         Were they memories of what this blasted article of clothing represented?

         Alfred felt his lip wobble briefly until he forced his teeth to bite down upon them, for he felt the gross bubbling resurface to his throat.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Joe let out a short, mute yawn as he propped his head on the table where he and his dad sat. He was getting sleepy. What time was it…? He should be home now and sleeping, but he knew his dad wanted to be here for superhero stuff, so...he’d just have to bear with it.

         “Don’t worry,” Bob’s voice suddenly said, “you can take a nap while we’re still here. Go ahead.”

         He nodded and mumbled a small, “Okay.”

         Bob, meanwhile, sighed and looked down at the red and gold duffle bag he sat down by his seat. He wasn’t supposed to be seen out of costume like that. Heck, he wasn’t sure if he ever wanted to be discovered who he was by Larry.

         ‘ _W--well, think of it this way_ ,’ his conscious feebly assured him, ‘ _since Dormancer’s around, we might be more distracted with that and_ not _me being Thingamabob._ ’

         “Hey’a Bob--”

         The small male jumped in his seat with a nearly mute “ee!” at a familiar voice speaking behind him. He turned and there was the hero of Bumblyburg, out of his superhero attire and back into...whatever kind of costume that was. “Oh…” his voice dripped with not being impressed by Larry doing that, “ _hi_ Larry.”

         He tilted his head to him. “You okay?”

         The tomato sighed, turn his head away for a moment. “I didn’t want you to know who I was,” he confessed.

         “Oh. Sorry…”  
         “N--no, it’s okay. I knew you’d eventually find out, regardless if I want you to or not.”

         Larry took a seat beside Bob, asking, “Um, so...how’ve ya been?”

         “Fine, I...guess,” he replied, hesitating. “Is Alfred going to be okay? I think he’s starting up in the bathroom again.”

         On cue, loud coughing from the British man could be heard loud and clear. Surprisingly, the noise didn’t stir Joe from his nap. Larry, though, couldn’t help but worry about Alfred again.

         “I...think he’s okay. We were plannin’ on leavin’ when he’s done in there.”  
         “Oh. Well, I...um, guess Joe and I should be going--”

         “Wait,” Larry blurted out all of a sudden, even surprising himself in the process, “you and Joe can stay with us tonight! It’s pretty dark out now.”

         He blinked widely. “Are you sure…?”

         “Sure! The mansion’s got a lot of rooms. You can shack up in one!”  
         “Well…”

         Larry smiled a little at him, almost shy in nature. “Since we really can’t do much about Dormancer for the time bein’, maybe we could catch up on our personal lives ‘til he pops up, Bob.”

         Larry sure was taking this revelation without falter, wasn’t he? Bob couldn’t help but feel taken aback by this, but he would have to answer soon, for he heard the water in the bathroom run one more time. He had his superhero phone on hand in case there was something back at home which he needed to help with, so it wasn’t as though Solanum would be defenseless without him. Besides, they were fine before he moved out there.

         ...boy, this was going to be an awkward night ahead.

         He managed to smile in return as he answered, “Why not. Thanks, Larry.”

         Alfred finally emerged from the bathroom in a simple black sweater and a sigh while the jacket he wore earlier relaxed over his shoulder. “Alright, gentlemen” he announced, which made the two turn around in their seats, “...I believe I’m done. We can depart from here before we’re accused of _trespassing_.”

         “Alfred,” Larry got out of his seat, frowning worriedly, pointing out, “you look pretty pale and shaky.”

         “Consequence for what I drank a large amount of, Master Larry,” was his explanation for his physical state, along with a reassuring smile. “I’ll be fine--”

         Alfred cried out all of a sudden when, in a flash, he was lifted from the floor and into the hold of Larry. The out-of-costume hero said, “No worries, I’ll carry ya to the car.”

         “M--Master Larry! I promise that I’m capable of standing!”  
         “Just in case.”

         More heat gathered to the Brit’s cheeks whilst he looked down to his lap and grumbled in defeat and embarrassment, “ _Bother…_ ”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         “As for the condition of all of the party-goers,” a woman’s voice from the televisions suspending from various parts of the diner reported, “all of them are not suffering any injuries; however, try as the doctors and nurses try, none of them are waking up.”

         Lunt snorted at that as he sipped his crystal-clear soda from a glass at that. “ _Nice_.”

         “Will they wake up once ten or ten-thirty rolls around? We’ll let you know in the morning.”

         Nezzer, meanwhile allowed his purple eyes to drift from the television closer to the booth he shared with Lunt and over to the window beside him. Through heavy eyelids, he inquired through a mumble, “Lunt, could you describe Dormancer to me?”

         He quirked a brow at this, but boy...was he willing to comply with the big fella’s curiosity. He sat back against the ever-so-comfy seat and answered, “Pretty big fella all in purple. I only had a glimpse of his eyes. They looked freaky, but I wasn’t scared by those _and_ him.”

         Considering the tiny “nyeee” sound of fright he remembered hearing from Lunt, Nezzer doubted that statement and couldn’t resist but to snort a laugh which grabbed the decorative gourd’s attention in an instant, confused.

         “Uh...don’t know why you’re laughin’, but...it’s kinda cute regardless.”

         Ahh, _if only Lunt knew_.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next "March 13" part will hopefully be up in a week or two. We'll see. :B


	4. March 13 (Part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's flashbacks galore as March 13 ends!
> 
> First, we dive into the humble start of Dormancer, followed by the fastest fingers on the planet known as Thingamabob. Finally, things wrap up as March 13 ends for our heroes.
> 
> Yeah, something like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :B It's finally here! Sorry it took longer than a week. What a long March 13...

* * *

 

 

 _Not far from Bumblyburg, there’s a city called Solanum. It’s moderate both in size and population; however, like every other city in existence...they had their own trouble now and then with crime. Sure, the criminals there weren’t as absurd or downright silly as the ones located within the walls of Bumblyburg, but still, Solanum had some baddies which required more than the local police to step in...or rather, the citizens wished there was someone_ unique _to help, but there was none._

 _Not_ yet _, anyway..._

 

 

 

_As the final moving truck pulled away, he called out a small, “Thank you.”_

_The large, white truck soon shrunk in size the farther it blazed down the street on this chilly afternoon in October. Finally, it was a dot, and then...nothing._

_A pathetic sigh escaped through his mouth._

_Well, he was alone again._

_He turned his attention to the two-story house and let his eyes trail from the three-step stairs in front of the entrance up to the brick chimney before they went downcast._

_If truth be told (and was completely obvious)...today was..._ not _the best in his life._

 _“Look on the bright side, Bob,” he said to himself; although, he still couldn’t find the enthusiasm in his tone, “Got a pretty decent job already, managed to have a good enough credit for a nice home...God’s really blessed me since it could’ve gone a_ lot _worse.”_

          **KRR SHH SHH!**

 _He fell silence before he said anything else, for Bob deflated as rain poured heavily on his form without even_ _a_ single warning _of possible rain to begin with. He took a long breath through his nostrils and then exhaled, shutting his eyes. “Thanks for the welcome, Solanum.”_

_Solanum said that you’re welcome, Bob._

_Bob hurried into the half-furnished house and shut the door behind him. Thankfully, he wasn’t too soaked, so he rubbed himself off with a towel, tossed a fluffy blue sweater on, and plopped onto the couch with a glass of warm apple cider._

_As the news on the television was wrapping up for the afternoon, Bob mutely glanced to the coffee table inches in front of him._

_There was a single, black and white photo of LarryBoy with something scribbled on it. The caption read:_

         To Bob.

         With love,

         LarryBoy.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         “Bob? You okay?”

         Bob gasped without a sound, blinking, his mouth gaping as though he was a fish gulping air. He realized that he had spaced out during the very quiet car trip, and the squeaky-voiced person sitting beside him, driving, was wondering about his state. His blue eyes trailed to the left at Larry who was staring back with his big brown pair. “Yeah, I was just thinking about something.”

         “Somethin’ troublin’ ya? We can talk about it while we’re at a red light.”  
         “Besides Dormancer being in my old hometown, nothing’s the matter.”

         Larry tilted his head. “Was Dormancer really bad in, um…”

         “ _Solanum_ ,” he told him the name of the city without missing a beat. “He was...well, annoying. That’s my way of summing him. If there weren’t criminals to stop, there was a chance he would go after people who stayed up late...like...like a modern day Sandman.”

         “Oh.”  
         “Like we’ve discussed, he’s capable of appearing and disappearing into thin air. It doesn’t help that he hardly leaves clues behind besides blankets, so the thought of locating and capturing him is easier _said_ than _done_.”

         Larry hummed in response, not knowing what to say. He looked at the traffic light ahead. Of course, it was still red. The out-of-costume hero cranked his head behind to check on Alfred. Joe and Alfred were propped on the left and right side of the car, respectively, sleeping quietly. He couldn’t help but grin at how cute the butler seemed, using that familiar metallic-looking jacket as a makeshift pillow whilst his monocle stayed on his face with absolute dedication.

         “You know,” Bob spoke up, getting Larry’s attention, “I’m honestly surprised to see you driving. Last time we talked about the topic, you said it was too scary.”

         He grinned. “Alfred helped me out. How’d ya think I went around as LarryBoy all these years?”

         “...remote controlled car?”  
         “...huh. Y’know, that sounds like a cool idea. I wonder if Alfred could modify the Larry Mobile with somethin’ like that.”

         A brief laugh came from Bob. “I wouldn’t be surprised. Alfred’s limitless with technology. That would probably be easy for him!”

         The light turned green, and Larry immediately looked back to the street and then resumed driving.

         Hoo-boy, what to talk about next? Should they continue the small talk? After all, he knew how close they were to arriving to the mansion, so he might as well wait until they settled inside that humongous estate

         ...that is, if he decided to give in and tell Larry about…

_Oh boy, here comes the anxiety._

         Bob sunk back into his seat, his small form shivering with uncertainty.

         Larry stole a stare and noticed the anxiety written upon the tomato’s face. Did he feel scared that he was exposed for who he was underneath the Thingamabob mask? Well, yeah Bob might have felt awkward about this. Imagine your old boss who moved to another city years ago returning as a fellow superhero and was working with you on several occasions! He could try asking Bob about Dormancer some more instead of...well, Bob being Thingamabob.

         “Hey Bob?”  
         “Hm?”

         He inquired, innocent in his tone of voice, “How did you know Dormancer was gonna show up anyway?”

         Oh, thank goodness, Larry was asking about something else…

         Bob began to relax little by little as he answered with a half-smile, “Alfred contacted me yesterday, asking about him.” His eyes glanced up to the rear view mirror, watching the slumbering Brit murmur in his sleep. “I wanted to come by and see for myself. You know, to be sure it was actually him and not a possible copycat. Alfred mentioned something about a dance party that lasted late, and with that info, I assumed that Dormancer would appear there.”

         And then his eyes trailed to Joe’s sleeping form. “I know it was careless of me to bring Joe with me, but I didn’t know what else to do with him since he wanted to go to the party and meet you guys. Admittedly,” he confessed, “I wish I could’ve gotten there sooner -- before that fiend even had a _chance_ to use his sleep mist on the citizens. I know that his powers don’t exactly hurt people, but it’s the fact he’s even using it on them which bothers me. I’m sorry.”

         “If it’ll make you feel better about what happened,” Larry pinpointed, grinning, “everybody’s unharmed, _and_ you managed to stop him from doing the same to me ‘n’ Lunt! We could’ve been sleeping along with them if it wasn’t for you, Bob.”

         Bob’s body jolted slightly all of a sudden when he felt a soft impact against the middle of his tiny back. His head whipped to Larry, terribly confused at the touch. “What was that?”

         He blinked. “I was trying to pet your back with my shoulder.”

         “Oh, right…” Bob chose to look out his window and watch the scenery go by in moderate speed, murmuring, “...no hands. Thanks, Larry.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Good grief. No matter how hard he wanted to look at the empty glasses in front of him, Nezzer’s purple eyes failed to do just that.

         He shouldn’t be surprised that Lunt went and had this many shakes, but even a big guy like him thought five-going-on-six glasses of birthday cake -- when it wasn’t even close to his birthday! -- was _far_ too much.

         Speaking of his dear decorative gourd...he waltzed off to the bathroom a second ago not long after ordering his sixth milkshake. How did that boy not become lactose intolerance would be a mystery to him, for he wasn’t going to ask out loud such a personal question; although, he had a feeling Lunt would tell him anything if he wanted to.

         Heck, he _did_ at one point.

         A heavy frown tugged at his lips at the memory, and Nezzer reclined against the cushion with a sigh before sipping his sleepytime tea. Darn, he needed to change the topic before he remembered more of it.

Well, let’s see...the restaurant was quaint. It had a nice, homely feeling to it which mixed with the classic American 50’s aesthetic. The service was, well, nice as well. Pretty sure a waiter recognized him in some way since he kept peeking over to him from behind the kitchen window. Hopefully it wasn’t because of the whole Dormancer thing but rather something innocent such as “that huge fellow who owned a pub and grill for almost eight years”...

Shoot, now he needed to think of something else since Lunt _still_ didn’t return.

Suddenly, it was like a light bulb activating in his head.

_Thingamabob._

         He lifted his cup away from his lips as he murmured in question, “What on earth is he doing here? Did someone call him out, or did he just happen to drop by conveniently…?” He would’ve asked Lunt, but he was worried the short man would eventually become suspicious of the questions about Thingamabob even being there.

         ...maybe. He wasn’t going to risk it.

         Still, pretty interesting to see Thingamabob here instead of in Solanum.

         The frown which tried to form quirked into an amused, sleepy grin. “He _sure is_ persistent. I thought he would’ve left me alone by now.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

**_March 13 (Part 3)_ **

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 _Not far from Bumblyburg, there’s a city called Solanum. It’s moderate both in size and population; however, like every other city in existence...they had their own trouble now and then with crime. Sure, the criminals there weren’t as absurd or downright silly as the ones located within the walls of Bumblyburg, but still, Solanum had some baddies which required more than the local police to step in...or rather, the citizens wished there was someone_ unique _to help, but there was none._

 _Not_ yet _, anyway…_

_He sat down the final photo onto the living room end table and couldn’t help but look at his beaming face as he stood in front of his pub and grill from years ago. God, how he missed it already. Why did he give it up just because of a blackout caused by some Tech Whisperer person? He could’ve picked up the pieces and continued on working there regardless, but…_

_He honestly wasn’t feeling well around that time, so he took the blackout as a sign to take a break._

_If he ever wanted to go back into entrepreneurship, he could find a passable building and start from scratch rather than buying back the former building from its new owner. Besides, the place was in good hands -- he knew it._

_Nezzer finally allowed himself to plop onto the suite’s couch with a sigh. Well, his vacation could finally start, but…_

_...what exactly was he supposed to do? Did he need to look up “how to vacation?” on his phone and then find something interesting? Because that’s what he did after sitting there, confused, for a few seconds and wondering._

_‘Food service without guilt of overindulging?’_

_...he was sort of hungry, so why not._

_Soon, he searched for other “things to do on vacation” and “things to do while staying at a fancy hotel” while waiting for his mouth-watering food to arrive at his suite’s door. Uh-uh, that looked interesting...ah, but so did that. Heck, he could do both of those things if he wanted to -- he certainly had the money, even though he never flaunted it._

_As Nezzer reclined sideways on the couch with a drowsy grin and his purple eyes scrolling the words on his mobile phone, a yawn suddenly escaped from him which then was followed by a second, longer one._

_“But I just had a nap on the train ride here,” he said out loud, frowning, “I shouldn’t be sleepy already…”_

_He sat up with a grunt, both from the movement he made and the annoying realization that he began to show signs of fatigue._

_Nezzer muttered, though not sounding as frustrated as he felt, “All of that lack of sleep I’ve had during work is catching up to me, isn’t it?”_

_He sighed. Perhaps his nap wasn’t as effective as he first believed upon arriving to the hotel. Difficult it was to understand his own body sometimes._

Insomnia _\-- that’s what the doctor believed he had. No matter how much he slept, his energy was low. There were other moments when he couldn’t sleep a wink or a minimal amount, maybe still full of energy from work-related activities. To boot, this sleep issue made him...well,_ depressed _at times._

 _“I hope this time away from everything will help,” he said, although his tone didn’t sound hopeful_ at all _._

**_Knock knock knock._ **

_“But first,” he arose from the couch, saying, “time to eat.”_

_Hoo-boy, and ate he did...and without guilt of overindulging!_

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

_As much as he should’ve tried to sleep once his stomach settled, Nezzer couldn’t help but deny his conscious’ thoughts and chose to venture outdoors instead. Where exactly he was going, he wasn’t so sure himself. He allowed, instead, to let his body wander wherever it felt like it. Whenever he was ready to head home, he could call a cab rather than backtracking on “foot”. See? Everything was all planned!_

_Nezzer undid his tie as he continued venturing the city of Solanum. Cars here and there, people here and there, the list went on that there were quite a lot of things here. Must have been a busy day or something._

_He sucked in some air and then released it slowly, just like he was taught by his therapist if he ever felt unnerved; however, doing this at the moment was for feeling the fresh air fill his lungs rather than that._

_Nezzer’s head turned to the left just in time to see the window belonging to a pet store, and within that window was an area where seven bunnies were minding their own business, whether it was sleeping, eating, relaxing, or twitching happily in the air before running around the area. His heart briefly stopped at the display, and so did the rest of his body as a small gasp escaped him._

_The large man turned his entire body to the window and leaned in to further observe the cute fluffy creatures. Oh no, his heart was melting! Bunnies, no! Stop it!_

_“Aww…” he couldn’t help but made that oh-so familiar sound while a heartfelt smile appeared on his face._

The doctor mentioned that having a pet could help _,’ his conscious told him. ‘_ A _pet.’_

_Suddenly, he said out loud, not caring if any passerby might hear him, “What?! I can’t separate them, it wouldn’t be right!” Nezzer glanced off to the side, standing up straight. “Although…” he murmured before his purple eyes trailed back to the bunnies._

_It was time to flaunt his money._

  


 

_“Yes sir, they’ll be dropped off at your address once the payment goes through. We’re glad to see all the siblings going together! Thank you again for your purchase, Mister Nezzer!”_

_Nezzer bowed his head with a smile to the store owner as he left the pet store. As he began to walk off, his said to himself, “That was the best purchase I’ve made in my entire life.”_

_All of a sudden--_

_“Stop! Get back with that,” an older woman’s voice yelled over the gasps and yells of people from far behind. “Come back you whippersnapper!”_

_Nezzer spun around to see people being knocked over by, what it appeared to be, an incoming thief. He was obviously trying to get away from the woman who shouted seconds ago. Well, he wasn’t going to let anybody steal anything from anybody else._

_As much as he wanted to try tripping him somehow, Nezzer was aware of how it would be a difficult due to the lack of legs and all. So Nezzer, being the huge fella that he was, twisted his body forward just in time for the thief to run into his form without warning. The thief grunted and stumbled back a few as the item he had flew into the air, but Nezzer was able to capture the necklace once it began to fall with one “hand”._

_The thief wasn’t deterred for long, since he had the gall to get up in Nezzer’s face, regardless if he was simply a regular sized broccoli guy. “Hey you,” snapped the thief, “hand it back or you’ll be sorry.”_

_Nezzer wasn’t amused by this. “Boy, looking at your face right now, I can tell you’re sleep deprived…probably why you’re acting like a fool.”_

_“Dude, just hand it over! Or else--!”_

_“Or else_ what _,” Nezzer repeated those two words, his voice’s pitch dropping which cause the thief to finally realize what he had done was absolutely stupid and careless._

_The man gulped._

_Unbeknownst to either men, the item in Nezzer’s hand began to emit a soft, purple glow._

_Nezzer continued speaking, “That’s what I thought. Now how about you give the necklace back and get some_ sleep _.”_

_Wait, what? What was going on with the broccoli fella’s eyes? They were purple and hazy, almost...hypnotized with the swirls forming within the pair!_

_The thief stammered only a weak, “Wh--wha…” then collapsed onto the ground and began to snore._

_Not only was Nezzer downright confused (and a bit concerned), but so were the civilians who gaped and murmured at the scene. Was the man going to be okay? It only sounded as though he fell asleep. Huh, perhaps Nezzer was right about him being tired…_

_Finally, an old gourd woman caught up to the scene. When the lady saw Nezzer holding onto the necklace, her brows raised at the mist dying out around it. “Well now…”_

_Nezzer blinked, but then realized that this was the lady yelling out at the thief earlier. “Oh! Um…” He hopped over the snoozing man’s body and approached the old gourd, offering the necklace. “Here you go, Miss” he gingerly said._

_She tilted her head at the object and then moved her eyes up to Nezzer. All of a sudden, she smiled and said with a shake of her head, “Consider that amulet as my thanks...and a_ gift _from Old Lady Gourd, young man.”_

_Before Nezzer could say a word, the old lady bowed her head and hopped past him and into the crowd ahead._

_Nezzer blinked twice or thrice, taking in what just happened while everybody else around him did the same as well. Someone was heard calling either the police or ambulance for the sleeping man on the ground. At last, Nezzer pulled the necklace--no, no, amulet-- to take a good gander at the item._

_Looked like it had some sort of quartz in it...the purple kind. (_ Amethyst _, Nezzer.) It seemed as though there was also yellow and light blue intertwined as well._

_He hummed in thought. “Today’s turning into a pretty interesting day…”_

_If only he knew how more interesting things were going to get for him._

 

 

_While Nezzer was still adjusting to his new life in Solanum, somebody else had long ago _did just that..._ _

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

_Working at a mechanic shop during the morning hours and then going to Solanum Community College at night was pretty much Bob’s routine. It took him a while to adapt to his sleep schedule; however, by the third (or fourth) week, he became accustomed._

_Help with cars and the like for a bit, and then switch over to building some rather neat technology stuff with others at the college -- not a bad deal._

_In fact, he rather liked it…_

_“Hey, what’s Bob trying to do again?”_ _  
_ _“He wanted to try making artificial limbs. It’s possible nowadays, so…”_

_Bob wasn’t bothered at all by the conversation going on feet away from him, for he was more into what was going on in front of him. There was a robotic arm resting upon a display holder while a single cord from the arm was connected to a pad attached to Bob’s left side temple._

_Bob stared at the arm, and the arm returned it. Neither made a single movement._

_He narrowed his eyes, just a bit before he murmured, “C’mon...you can do it.”_

_Suddenly, the five fingers coiled in, as though the hand tried to grip onto something._

_Bob’s mouth gaped wide at the reaction while the two in the back started clapping for the sophomore. Well, the arm did it. Could the rest of it move too? He had to find out._

_First, the fingers moved one at a time, almost as though they were mimicking a wave. Bob made them clench loosely at first and then again with less care. He grabbed another wire hanging from the arm, one which resided at the elbow, and connected the end to the pad on his template’s right side._

_The elbow had moved a little before, so perhaps after the tweaks he gave it earlier this week, Bob could finally see it in action. Boy, this was exciting for him…_

_Up, down, up, down...the arm began to wave, and soon the hand joined in as the fingers started to do a wave of their own._

_All of the limbs were moving!_

_“Good job, Bob!”_ _  
_ _“Wow, look at it go!”_

_It took Bob a second to register that another great thing just occurred, but once he did, he weakly laughed with a smile spreading across his flushed face._

  
  


 

_Bob built a second arm near the end of the semester because, hey...why not._

_It took a bit less time to build since he had scribbled down where this piece should be placed and how tight or loose that area had to be in order to function like an ordinary arm._

_“These arms are great…” he couldn’t help but boast about them whenever he entered the technology facility at the start of a new week, “but…” he paused, “something’s missing and I can’t put my finger on why.”_

_Well for one thing, you don’t have a finger of your own, buddy._

_“Eh, I’ll figure it out after I get something in my stomach.”_

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

_Bob was given the okay to take his arms once the semester ended which really lifted his spirits. Gosh, he wished he could do more with them. All that came to mind was somehow attaching the limbs to himself or making them stronger._

_The endless possibilities ran through his head as he continued munching away at his double bacon burger over the music playing from the speakers of the restaurant._

_His blue eyes briefly glanced to his side. Ahh, there were the arms -- tucked away tightly in a sealed metal case on the booth seat._

_‘Sealed metal case,’ you asked. ‘Isn’t that a bit much?’_

_Well, no. Not only were these arms Bob’s first successful works, but these were_ artificial limbs that could move by will _. Rather certain they ought to be protected should anybody try stealing them._

_“ALRIGHT EVERYBODY, THIS IS A STICK-UP!”_

_Crap._

_Bob jolted in his seat from the booming voice and screams of fellow patrons suddenly ringing out. He whipped around and saw a broccoli-looking guy standing atop the restaurant counter with a pistol waving in the air._

_He furrowed his brows, though he was still shaken._

_Good grief, this was the fourth time this place was getting hit this_ month _! What was with Solanum?!_

 _“Now listen,” the robber spoke up once again and whipped out an empty bag from out of nowhere, “I want each and every one of you to dump your fries into the bag,” his voice dipped in pitch, adding, “and_ no one _gets hurt.”_

_Bob muttered, “Oh great...a fry robber this time? I guess I’m not surprised since that last one wanted burgers…”_

_“HAND. ME. YOUR. FRIES! RIGHT NOW, EVERYBODY!”_

**_BANG!_ **

_Bob, along with several other people, yelped and ducked underneath the table after the robber shot his pistol into the air. His heart raced a mile a minute and his vision...good grief, everything around him was mingled and dizzying!_

_Great, this is just what he needed, another panic attack. Why did he have to be like this?_

_“Deep breaths, Bob,” he muttered to himself as he clamped his eyes shut, “deep breaths.”_

_And that’s just what he did over the yelling of the fry robber and the confused but also frightened murmurs of the customers. He did this action for ten seconds or so...enough to calm his nerves._

_Blinking rapidly, Bob opened his eyes and tried to focus on what was happening._

_Okay, there’s a weird guy demanding fries from everybody, but he also has a gun. There. That’s the situation._

_He sighed, shaking. Again, what the heck was with Solanum and their crime issues? They had a police force, but…_

_A light went on in his head._

_Wait, did this place...not have a superhero? Is that why the place had crime problems left and right?_

_Bob mutely glanced to his case while the sound of the robber going “thank you” and “thank you very much” began along with grumbles of the restaurant-goers. He yanked the case down with him as a crazy idea began to run through his head. This was not only crazy, but careless for himself...but...why not give it a go._

_The broccoli man stopped at a table that only had a tray with a half-eaten burger and a strawberry shake with...quite a lot of whipped cream...oh, and also nobody. “Huh.” He scratched his head with his gun. “What kind of weirdo doesn’t order fries with a burger but still gets a shake?”_

_Something gripped his end from below._

_He jumped in place and then shot his head down to see a...what the heck was that? That didn’t look like a human hand, but it sure_ looked like _a hand...a_ robotic _one._

 _That was when a voice said, “_ I’m _that weirdo!”_

_The robber suddenly felt his lower area being yanked forward while the rest of himself fell backwards onto the cold ground with a loud “thump”. His gun, meanwhile, flew out of his possession. Before he could unscramble his mind or struggle to his non-existent feet, the robotic hand kept a hold on him._

_Another hand shot out from underneath the table and held its palm down onto his chest for good measure._

_Finally, someone lunged out._

_Now for Bob, this scene of someone with two wires attached to his head and to a pair of robo-arms_ looked _weird, but to him, it was something he was proud of._

_Bob forced his small frame on the robber’s body for more weight. “Hand over the fries,” he demanded._

_He took one good look at the costume mask he wore around his eyes and then to the robotic arms pinning him down. The robber instantly handed the money bag full of fries to Bob. “Take ‘em.”_

_Someone in the back yelled, “The police are on their way!”_

_Bob grabbed the fries with the hand used to hold down the robber’s chest with a huff._

_The murmurs came back as people began to settle down and even move about the facility. The older gentlemen lifted the robber to his feet after Bob hopped off. Obviously, these guys weren’t gonna let go of him, much to the disappointment of the would-be robber._

_Bob spotted his reflection in the napkin dispenser when he turned to his table, and...hoo-boy. Did he look silly with that mask he threw on. “Good thing I didn’t clear out my gym bag since Halloween…” he muttered with amusement._

_“Excuse me, sir?”_

_A surprised “ee!” flew out from between his teeth at a man’s voice speaking from behind. He spun and saw a few curious civilians staring at him funny. “E--e--um, yes?”_

_He asked, a hopeful smile coming to his face, “Are you a superhero?”_

_Bob mentally gulped._

_“...I…”_

_His blue eyes briefly went to the dispenser again. Yep, that red and gold mask was still there. He can’t believe he did that. Why did he have to?! What made him want to go and do that--?!_

_LarryBoy._

_That was something he would’ve done, he bet._

_And this poor place was lacking its own LarryBoy…_

_And Bob didn’t like that._

_He sucked in some air, ignoring how his little heart started pounding faster for the second time that day and then glanced to the man and the others. “I am.”_

_“Ooooo,” a few went as others murmured to each other._

_The man inquired, “Wow that’s...wh--what’s your name? Could you please tell us?”_

_Bob’s arms coiled against him as he struggled for a quick name so he could get out of here asap. Red Wonder? No. Bobin? Nah. His eyes darted all over the restaurant, trying to find some kind of inspiration--_

_Wait, wait…_

_A kid was sitting at a table with her dad, munching on a piece of candy. Bob caught a glimpse of the wrapper and winged it._

_“Thingamabob.”_

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

_Flash forward to years later..._

_So when Thingamabob arrived to the entertainment district of Solanum, he was confused by the slumbering man on the ground and the people surrounding his body._

_With furrowed brows, Thingamabob inquired the group, “What’s going on?”_

_A lady dressed in red and white spoke up, “This guy stole a lady’s necklace, but this huge guy blocked his path before he could run off.”_

_Another lady spoke up next, “He was getting up in the huge guy’s face but then he fell over and went to sleep!”_

_Thingamabob was still confused._

_“So...he fell asleep?”_ _  
_ _“Just like that! It was so weird!”_

_He hummed in thought. This scene felt off, but he couldn’t pinpoint it. Sure, the guy could’ve been really exhausted and ran out of energy, but…_

_...it was something._

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“You guys can sit on the couch while I take Alfred to bed,” Larry told Bob as the two entered the mansion, carrying the sleeping Alfred and Joe respectively.

Bob blinked and then shook his head. Good grief, did he space out again? It sure felt like it. “Um, okay…” he murmured in reply. “Thanks, Larry.”

Larry shot a shy smile to him. “No problem, Bob,” his voice was oddly soft, surprising himself. Guess he really missed seeing his former boss after all these years. Huh. Funny how he’s been seeing him quite frequently without him realizing it!

While Larry carefully hopped up the flight of stairs with Alfred being held bridal-style against him, Bob entered the living room, although hesitantly. His blue eyes scanned the room even as he finally hopped to the couch and took a seat.

 _Man_ , it’s been so long since he's seen this place without being Thingamabob.

He laid his son beside him as the tiny child continued snoozing away in that flower child costume he chose himself for the party.

         Well, time for the waiting game.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Larry was placing the sheet over Alfred’s body when, all of a sudden, the British man stirred with a groan which caught the out-of-costume hero off-guard.

         “Alfred?”

         Alfred stretched in place before finally opening his eyes, ignoring that his monocle wasn’t present on his face and instead realized he was in a bedroom rather than the car. “Oh, Master Larry,” he said with a sleepy smile, “I hope I wasn’t much of a problem bringing me to bed.”

         He winked to him. “Nah, you were as light as a feather.”

         Alfred glanced down at the sheets and, immediately, he noticed two things:

         One: he wasn’t wearing his Tech Whisperer attire…

         And two--

         “Why am I in your bed?”

         Larry beamed a grin. “I’m probably gonna be downstairs for a while with Bob, so you can stay in it for the night. Besides you bein’ under the weather, it’s your birthday!”

         He quirked a brow through squinted eyes. “Oh...well, alright.”

         “Let me know if you need anythin’, okay?”  
         “I shall, Master Larry. Thank you.”   
         “No problem, Alfred. Try to get some sleep.”

         Larry began to head out of the room when a sudden thought struck Alfred.

         Shoot, he never asked Larry how he got him out of his Tech Whisperer clothes.

         ‘ _Perhaps it would be better if I don’t know_ ,’ he thought while a blush spread across his cheeks.

         Blimey, what a birthday this turned out to be…(and a rather eventful one at that).

 

 

* * *

 

 

**_to be continued_ **


	5. This Is the Fifth Chapter (Everybody Talks)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's talking and even some amends being made between former boss and employee.
> 
> We're inching closer to knowing more about the man with the stunning purple eyes who can put any and all to sleep...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there! I apologize for the delay (and this chapter's length)! I had a huge writers block and personal things going on, but hopefully this won't occur with the next chapter. We'll see. :B
> 
> As for how many chapters/how long this will be is still uncertain. Will it be about the same length as "Tech Whisperer" or perhaps longer? I think so.
> 
> Thank you for your patience!

         Throughout the house which belonged to a certain man with purple eyes, it was in darkness, overall; however, it finally came to an end when the front door to the house opened, followed by a switch flicking on and filling the area with light.

         Good grief, what time was it?

         Well, it was time for bed, according to Nezzer...but, considering Lunt was with him, he doubt he would be sleeping anytime soon, much to his dismay.

         “You think your ‘babies’ are sound asleep?”  
         “They usually are around this time...like _I_ ought to be. Wouldn’t hurt if you were, too.”

         The next thing Nezzer knew, Lunt bounded off and poked his head into a room to the right of Nezzer’s bedroom. Nezzer immediately followed him with a huff.

         That was the room which belonged to his seven fluffy lionhead rabbits.

         Beyond the simple gate which separated the room from the living room, the two saw the bunnies doing their own things about the room. Some were sniffing and moving across the floor, others were hanging out on the many playsets that Nezzer bought for their first month anniversary with him, and some were asleep. Oh, and there was also a fluffy white one twitching and jumping into the air. A silly sight for people who have never seen rabbits do that before.

         Lunt shot a question to Nezzer, “Dolly’s acting weird again. What’s up?”

         Nezzer’s purple eyes went to the fluffy white bunny and, good golly...his heart melted. Dolly was such a happy girl! “She’s doing a binky, Lunt,” he responded, trying to keep his tone as regular as possible. “She’s happy.”

         On cue, Dolly twitched happily into the air and then landed atop a sleeping, fluffy brown bunny, causing him to jolt awake from surprise.

         “ ‘ey,” Lunt called out to Dolly, “watch where you’re landin’! Almost hurt Puss Destroyer...”

         “No yelling at them,” Nezzer told him while also rolling his eyes at the name. “Also, I still think you should call him something else...”

         “I already toned the name down to Puss Destroyer though.”  
         “...why did I ever let you name him?”

         ‘Puss Destroyer’ shook his head before taking off to the play-set with a grunt and the kick of his back feet whilst Dolly finally laid down and then flopped over.

         Lunt glanced from PD over to Nezzer with a smirk. “Because we’re both handsome monsters.”

         “You’re a monster _alright_ ,” he shot.

         “C’mon, big fella...I know you love me.”

         Nezzer felt his cheeks heat up as he huffed at that embarrassing comment.

         “Anyway,” Lunt turned from the room, peeling off the fake beard he had hanging from his chin and then repeated the action with the rag on his head, saying, “I’m gonna watch some 90s movies to ease my disappointment after tonight.”

         “Scary movies, I take it?”  
         “Nah, ‘Scream’. ‘Scary Movie’ got boring after the first thirty viewings…”

         And with that, Lunt hopped back to the living room, leaving the precious bunnies and Nezzer to do their own thing--

         “Hey, I’m gonna change out of my costume later! You sure you don’t wanna see the bullet graze on my shoulder?”

         He let out a huge, drawn out sigh and shook his head. Nezzer looked to the room in time to see PD curiously moving over to him. A chuckle escaped him at the cute fluffball who lifted his head with a twitching nose and the eyes peering up through the fur almost covering them. Smiling, he lifted the bunny into his hold.  “Must be confusing to have two names. Isn’t it, Lunt?”

         Lunt the bunny relaxed and plopped his head against Nezzer over the sound of stock footage screaming coming from the living room.

         “Between you and me,” he lowered his voice enough for the bunny to hear, “I feel a bit guilty for what happened tonight considering how upset Lunt was, but...sleep’s more important.” He sighed once more. “Too bad I couldn’t have done more thanks to Thingamabob.”

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

_..._

 

* * *

 

 

 

         ...well, this waiting game was getting pretty long. Not that Bob minded, of course. The situation leading to this was what made it seem awkward. He sighed shakily, sitting back against the couch.

         Deep breaths through the nostrils, Bob...just like the therapist said. Come on, calm down buddy.

         There, much better.

         His blue eyes glanced to Joe’s slumbering form and, in an instant, a small smile tugged at his lips. “At least I’m not down here by myself,” he murmured.

         “Hey Bob!”

         A surprised yelp tore out from his mouth before he spun to the left in his seat and saw Larry entering the living room with a quirked brow, probably because of the noise. He didn’t have to worry about disturbing Joe, thankfully...that boy could sleep through an earthquake.

         “Oh...h-hey.”

         “Sorry it took a while,” Larry apologized. “Wanted to make sure Alfred was okay.”

         He gave him a small partial smile in reply. “It’s fine. I was occupied with something.”

         There was a brief moment of silence between the two...a rather awkward one. Suddenly, Larry remembered something.

         “Oh right. Ice cream...I’ll go get it right now! Stay there!”  
         “Um, well, alright--”

         Larry hopped past the television and into the kitchen within seconds. Once that happened, the sound of cabinet doors and dishes clattering about could be heard. A grumble or two was what followed, and then--

         Dishes breaking, causing Bob to jump in his seat once again.

         Larry suddenly said, “...oops.”

         ...time to go investigate.

         Now, Bob had the (ahem) honor of knowing Larry for a few years, and his gut was telling him _exactly_ what could’ve happened; however, the tomato decided that, maybe, that wasn’t the true result of the noise--

         ...his gut was right.

         There was Larry, kneeling and picking up pieces of a broken dish (possibly a bowl).

         Bob cleared his throat with a cough to get Larry’s attention. When the younger man glanced up at him with a flushed face, he asked, “Did you need help?”

         Larry rose with the pieces he managed to grab so far. “Uh, sure,” he answered. “I’m sorta...clumsy about stuff like this. I’ll just use the plastic ones.”

         So here was Bob currently picking pieces of a destroyed bowl while he retrieved the plastic, colorful bowls from another cabinet, one right beside the refrigerator. The awkward silence which easily returned wouldn’t have been so awkward if it wasn’t the fact that…

         Bob carefully placed the pieces into the garbage bin, breaking the silence, “So...Larry, how’s life since I moved?”

         While he was mid-way pulling out a container of ice cream, he looked over his shoulder at the short man. “Uh, well,” he started, “Daily Bumble’s gone, so I’ve been working at a cafe for almost three years now…”

          _What?_

         Bob’s curious stare dropped in an instant. It took him a moment to recover his voice, and once he did, he repeated, “Daily Bumble is gone...?”

         Man, Bob sounded pretty heartbroken. Then again, Bob worked at the former newspaper industry for quite some time (way before he began working there as a janitor). The tomato must have possessed a special connection to Daily Bumble.

         ...must have? Nah, he did, definitely.

         “You didn’t know?”  
         “Well, no, I didn’t. I didn’t try checking on the ol’ place when I moved to Solanum for...nostalgic reasons.”

         Oh.

         “Oh,” Larry unknowingly echoed the narration. He began scooping ice cream into the bowls at the kitchen table as Bob hopped over to join him quietly. “Sorry.”

         A sigh escaped him. “It’s okay. Considering the whole ‘Incredible Vegetables’ relation we have going on, I would’ve found out sooner or later during a trip here. I’m just a bit shocked to know it even happened.”

         Larry finished filling up Bob’s bowl and nudged it towards him along with a spoon. “Well…” he confessed with a shrug while his eyes trailed off to the side, “I’m also sorry ‘bout...y’know, gettin’ ya fired to begin with.”

         “N--no, no…” Bob shook his head and took a seat along with the frozen treat. “That was honestly my fault, Larry.”

         He blinked. “It is?”

         “Yeah, I mean,” Bob chuckled out as his cheeks began to heat from embarrassment, “I started getting rather... _obsessed_ with the whole LarryBoy thing so much that it got in the way of me being a boss to you guys.”

         ‘ _He’s not wrong_ ,’ Larry thought. “Still, gettin’ fired from a place you really liked kinda sucked, didn’t it?”

         “It did, it did,” he paused to taste a bit of the colorful ice cream. Huh...birthday cake? Not his cup of tea, but...oh well. “Maybe it was for the better that I left before I got myself killed somehow. I tried following you a few times while you were fighting crime out there,” he nudged his head to the window behind him.

         “In the backyard?”  
         “The _city_ , Larry.”   
         “Oh.”

         Silence.

         “Larry, did I...ever apologize to you for what happened at Daily Bumble? Because if I haven’t...I’m sorry.”

         Larry tilted his head at him. “What for?”

         Bob huffed ever-so-lightly. “The ‘LarryBoy’ thing, remember? I hardly left you alone once I knew who you were!”

         “Yeah, but Alfred said it was karma that ya got fired not long after that.”  
         “...well, he’s right.”

         “But to answer your question,” he said with a small smile, “I forgive ya.”

         Bob smiled back. “Thanks, Larry.”

         Once more, they fell into silence as they began to eat their ice cream together.

         Man, what a night this turned out to be. Dormancer went after a party, Larry found out that Thingamabob was his former boss...and they made amends to something which (in honesty) Larry didn’t believe was a problem at all. Heck, it was pretty cool how Bob was able to figure out who he was in costume.

         ...that and he got him fired.

         Yeah, Bob said it was his fault, but Larry still felt guilty that he was basically the cause.

         Larry’s brown eyes glanced to the man beside him. So the cool tech-y (that’s totally a word) guy who showed up to Bumblyburg once in a while has known him prior to becoming a superhero. He seemed more calm now, which felt nice to him, truth be told. He even got a kid!

         ...but how?

         “Hey Bob?”

         Bob was about to shove another spoonful into his awaiting mouth until he heard his name being called. His eyes went to Larry, responding, “Yeah?”

         He inquired with a tilt of his head, “Is Joe your kid? You know...like...”

         The tomato raised an eyebrow at first, but then once he understood why Larry was trailing off, he blinked widely with a darker shade of crimson spreading to his cheeks. “No! I…” he paused, sucking in some air through his nose to calm himself down, and then tried answering, “I adopted him.”

         Bob looked ahead to the entrance of the kitchen, and Larry followed the gaze.

         “He and his family used to be my neighbours for a couple of years, but then his parents were...gone. I took him in since he didn’t have any other family members.”

         ‘Gone’? That could mean anything, couldn’t it? Did they leave? Were they arrested for something? Did they _die_?

         Probably be rude to try and pry for more detail, and if Alfred was present, the butler would probably tell Larry the same thing before he had a chance to ask. So instead, he simply said, “ _Oh_.”

         “He’s the best thing to happen to me,” he confessed as he reclined against the chair, grabbing Larry’s attention, “but I wish it could’ve happened under better circumstances.” Bob looked to him. “Kind of like how you and Alfred got together.”

         Larry just sat there with furrowed brows and his lips almost forming a straight line but failing miserably. Finally, his eyes sailed off to the right whilst answering, “Yeah...like me and Alfred.”

         Oh boy, if only Bob knew about Alfred.

         “Larry?”

         He returned his stare to Bob, blinking. “Yeah Bob?”

         Bob questioned, “Why are you still wearing that costume?”

         Larry immediately looked at himself and then up at the multi-colored hat he donned. Once again, he looked at the tomato beside him and answered with a half-grin and a shrug, “The party ended sooner than expected, so…”

         “Oh.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

_..._

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Lunt continued to sleep rather peacefully on the comfy sofa of Nezzer’s living room as a heavy sheet fluttered from above and then wrapped around his form with care. Next, his head was lifted a bit and soon a pillow became sandwiched between the sofa’s arm and the gourd’s head. Of course, the guy didn’t wake up by the movement.

         “Still playin’ horror films, huh,” Nezzer murmured to himself as he approached the television. He debated on turning it off, but instead, he turned down the volume. “Just in case he decides to wake up again.”

         Well, now what?

         As much as he wanted to saunter off and rest for the remainder of the night, he couldn’t go to bed _just_ yet.

         “...” Nezzer looked over his shoulder at the slumbering “beauty” on his sofa and then back to the television.

         He lifted the remote control he grabbed earlier and changed the channel to a news station.

         Immediately, he was greeted by, of course, the news.

         “Apparently the Dormancer who stopped the petty thieves from taking thousands of dollars worth of electronic goods went after innocent civilians who were trying to have harmless fun at Bumblyburg Community Center. No one was harmed; however, like the thieves, they’re under a state of dormancy, even as they were transported to nearby hospitals.”

         ‘ _They’re not gonna wake up until the time I set ends_ ,’ Nezzer felt a smile tug at his lips. ‘ _Anyway…_ ’

         The large man switched the channel back to the (lowered) sounds of stock effect screaming and placed the remote control on the coffee table with a yawn.

         “Time for bed.”

 

 

 

          _He couldn’t sleep._

         Nezzer let out an annoyed groan as he flipped onto his back in bed. His purple eyes stared at the ceiling in thought. He wanted to sleep so much that he couldn’t shut up about the action for _hours_ , and yet…

         “Must be because I can’t sleep in my other room since Lunt’s here,” he thought out loud, frowning. He sighed again.

         He arose from his bed, grunting.

         “I’ll take a walk outside, I guess.”

         Nezzer swapped his purple and white pajamas for a button-up top and black trousers. He prepared to exit the room until he turned to his dresser. The amulet was pleading for him to take it with him, he could tell.

         “It wouldn’t hurt to check on the city,” he said.

         He grabbed the amulet, along with a purple sheet which laid neatly on his bed. Soon, he left the room, went by the room which belonged to his precious fluffballs, drifted by the snoring Lunt, and departed with a smile.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         [One thirty at night…](https://youtu.be/5JBNI1Hx6gY)

         Dormancer only saw a few people out and about, and although he could put them to sleep, he decided to hold it off just in case there was a possible crime afoot that he could deal with, rather than wasting energy on civilians. Besides, he did something similar earlier. Maybe his act will scare the rest of them to sleep or stay indoors.

         ...then again, since there _were_ people out, his act didn’t entirely scare everybody in Bumblyburg. No, he’d have to do more in order for that to happen.

         After all, that’s what he was close to doing in Solanum.

         From his sitting position atop the roof of the office he worked at by day, Nezzer inhaled some of the fresh late winter air, enjoying the cool sensation entering his nostrils. “I hope I get sleepy again soon…”

         He shut his eyes, allowing the light breeze to brush against him in a caring manner. Eventually, a song began to play in his mind:

          _Won't you play the music so the cradle can rock_   
          _To a lullaby in ragtime?_

         A small yawn escaped him as Harry Nilsson’s voice continued to croon through the late hour. The large man breathed in and out through his nose as slowly as possible.

         Ahh...peace.

 

 

 

         Wait, what was that?

         Nezzer opened his eyes and then looked to his chest. His amulet was beginning to blink with its soft blue light which made him stand up, for he knew what this meant. “Someone’s in trouble, I see. I’m glad it tells me where it is, considerin’ I can’t see much from up here...”

         He pulled up his hood and grabbed his staff which was propped against the building’s chimney.

         Without hesitation, he jumped off the establishment; however, instead of plummeting downwards, a purple mist immediately swallowed his cloaked form and carried him off to where a possible crime was in progress.

         Of course, the news of a carjacker being tied and then wrapped up in a heavy blanket in front of the car he tried stealing would be a topic once the morning news report aired for March 14th.

 

 

* * *

 

 

**to be continued**


	6. A Little Bit of Dormancing Part 1 ("Dormancing" Is Not A Word)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the late hours in Bumblyburg, many souls are resting; however, Dormancer seems to be struggling a bit and decides to spend some time...well, dormancing. ("Dormancing" is not a word.)
> 
> Oh, and Thingamabob (Bob) is still peeved about Dormancer even being here by having another flashback.
> 
> Part 1 of 2.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh...
> 
> oops.
> 
> Sorry for the two month wait. To make up for it, I'm uploading chapter 6 AND 7 together (chapter 6 right now and chapter 7 in the morning). :B

* * *

 

 

         “There we go…” Dormancer murmured under his breath once he tied the rope into a knot around the slumbering thief. From thin air, he produced a blanket, one which was the same color as the cloak he donned and then wrapped it around the man next.

          _Wee-woo-wee-woo, wee-woo--_

         Ah, _there_ was the familiar sound of the police sirens from a distance. Time to depart before they saw him. After all, he caused a bit of a ruckus hours ago.

         Before he puffed away, he gave a nod to the slumbering form, sleepily smiling as he said, “Goodnight.”

  


 

         Next, Dormancer chose to patrol around the precise area where the telemarketing building sat quietly. It didn’t surprise him that the night shift people were just now departing from the boring, but somewhat calming job until it was time to return.

         “Telemarketing…”

          _“I_ still _can’t believe you gave up the pub for a job at telemarketin’_ ,” Lunt’s words echoed in his head. _“Seriously,_ telemarketing _was the first thing that came to mind?”_

         “The more I think about it,” Dormancer said from his sitting position on the roof of a building across from where he worked, “the more I wonder if it really _was_ a good idea.”

         …

         “Of course it was.” He reminded himself, “I’m less stressed, I’m at peace, I’m able to sleep…”

         And then he remembered the reason why he was out and about in the first place.

         “I’m... _sort of_ able to sleep.”

         A sigh escaped him.

         “Telemarketing is a bit...uneventful, too. Not really satisfying, either,” he added as his purple eyes glanced off to the side, tired of staring at the building. “At least Mister Beet isn’t a monster of a boss. Gotta admit he can get grumpy at times, but...it’s not cause for alarm.”

         He shut his eyes as he sighed through his nostrils.

         “...hopefully I’ll be sleepy soon. I don’t like staying out late that much.”

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

         From the doorway to the guest room and finally out of his McFly costume, Larry watched Bob tuck Joe into the queen-sized bed and then peck a kiss atop his head. A quiet “goodnight” came from the tomato before he turned and hopped over to Larry.

         “Thanks for letting us stay the night,” Bob whispered.

         “No problem, Bob,” Larry responded with a smile, whispering back. “Goodnight--”

         “Wait, before you go…”  
         “Yeah?”

         “Since he really _is_ here in Bumblyburg,” Bob said with a shrug, his blue eyes going off to the side to avoid staring for much longer, “maybe we could talk a bit more about Dormancer in the morning.”

         He raised his brows. “Ooo, you’ve got juicy detail on ‘im?”

         “Well...yeah, to be honest.”  
         “It’s a _date_ then.”

         Bob chuckled out, “I guess so!”

         “Oh hey,” Larry spoke, “before you go to bed, I’ve gotta tell ya somethin’.”

         He blinked. “Yeah?”

         “Thanks for saving our butts tonight. I know S-Cape thanks ya too.”

         Bob felt a small, embarrassed smile tug at his lips before he gave in and looked to Larry. “No problem.”

         “G’night, Bob.”  
         “Goodnight, Larry.”

         With one last glance up at Larry, Bob carefully shut the door, leaving the hero of Bumblyburg to do whatever he was planning on doing next.

         Larry stayed quiet for a second but then said out loud, “Well, today was unexpected. Bet’cha Alfred won’t forget _this_ birthday…” He paused. “Hope he doesn’t forget his birthday next year though.”

         He hopped away from the now occupied guest room and continued down the hallway. Eventually, he ceased as his eyes went to the door of his bedroom with a hum, blinking.

         “Maybe I should go to sleep,” Larry contemplated.

         So, that’s what Larry ended up doing. He entered his room, tossed on a nightshirt, and then snuggled into the left side of the bed whilst Alfred continued snoozing away. Man, he hoped Alfred didn’t get a hangover; however, Larry had a feeling the butler would. Heck, he’d probably be the first person in the mansion to awake, even in such a state.

         Larry yawned. “Goodnight, Alfred,” he murmured to the sleeping form beside him. “Happy birthday.”

         He yawned once more, this time longer in length. It only took blinking five times or so, but soon, his eyes began to close...and then, he joined Alfred in dreamland.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Bob slipped into the bed beside his son, his eyelids growing heavy by the moment. He looked to Joe. The little fella had his body curled in whilst his face was squished against the fluffy pillow, smiling in his sleep. A brief, silent laugh escaped Bob from the sweet sight.

         “What a night,” the tomato muttered.

         He rolled over on the side, facing the window, and was greeted by the stars and moon relaxing in the sky.

         ...a night back at Bumblyburg...and at _Larry’s mansion_ to boot.

         Usually, this was the part where Bob would think about how so much occurred within a short amount of time; however, he was torn between Larry finding out he was Thingamabob and that darn Dormancer being in his hometown.

         “...darn Dormancer,” he decided to switch to the cloaked man. It was more important at the moment, anyway. “Why did he decide to come here?”

         He huffed under his breath.

         “Out of all the cities in this state, he waltzed into my hometown.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

**_Time for another dang flashback._ **

 

* * *

 

 

 

_Flash back to mid-November of last year, on the day in which Thingamabob swooped in to respond to an attempted robbery, only to arrive to the slumbering form of the would-be-thief. Apparently, the crook conked out when he got too close to one civilian’s face who tried to stop him._

_The situation was weird, that was for sure. Didn’t help that the civilians he questioned about what happened all, pretty much, said the same thing:_

_“He fell over and started sleeping in the middle of the sidewalk!”_

_That’s what he had to tell the cops who soon arrived along with an ambulance to pick up the snoring thief, much to the minor confusion of the two officers._

_“Well…” Thingamabob said, “I guess I’ll head off.”_

_With mumbled “excuse me” in order to squeeze through the dwindling but still rather big crowd, Thingamabob returned to his dear motorcycle, decked out in the same colors as he was, and then drove away._

  
  


_As soon as he opened the front door, Bob announced, “I’m home!”_

_Seconds after, Joe hopped out of the kitchen, a small bag of cookies in his hold. He perked up immediately when he saw Bob. “Hi Dad!”_

_Bob slipped into the house with his duffle bag, shutting and locking the door behind him. “How was school? Everything going well?”_

_He nodded shyly. “Uh-huh. Everything okay in Solanum?”_

_“Overall, yes, though…”_ _  
_ _“What?”_

 _That sleeping thief from earlier returned to his thoughts. A nagging feeling was persisting about it. Yeah, it was odd, but there was nothing he could do unless he got more information somehow, or check on the thief and perhaps ask him what lead to his sudden slumber if Bob became_ that _curious._

_Ah well, time to push those thoughts aside._

_“There was this one case that actually ended before I got to the scene,” Bob explained, “but it wasn’t anything big, so I’m not worried. Anyway, that’s in the past. Let me clean up and I’ll make us dinner tonight.”_ _  
_ _“Okay!”_

_This has been his life for a few years now, being Thingamabob and now a father to a young boy who lost his parents. Much different lifestyle than being boss at a newspaper group. He was in a better state of mind, too._

_Things have gotten so much better._

_Well, that is until..._

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

_Some of the baddies were stopped before Thingamabob had a darn chance to get to the scene of the crime. All of these scenarios also ended in the same manner...the thief (or thieves) were sleeping away, wrapped up with lightweight blankets of various kinds. This happened about ten times within two weeks before Thingamabob arrived to one prevented crime scene (the parking lot of a fast food joint) in time to see the slumbering form before the ambulance would cart him away._

_“Hold on, before you take him,” Thingamabob called to them, rushing to the scene, “can I see?”_

_The two carrot men who were about to put the sleeping thief on the stretcher nodded and backed up a little, giving Thingamabob some room._

_First thing that Thingamabob noticed was this was the fry robber from a long time ago. Couldn’t forget the broccoli who caused him to become Thingamabob in the first place if he tried. Next, he pulled off the blanket and examined the material. Well, it looked like a regular blanket so far._

_Wait a second._

_“Wait a second.” Thingamabob was midway through examining the blanket until he spotted a patch at the very end of a corner. His brows furrowed and pulled the end with the patch closer whilst the two men watched him quietly. The patch was of a single, nine-letter word in gold._

_“Dormancer,” the hero murmured the name in question. “Is he...a superhero?”_

_One of the ambulance workers let out a whistle. “Looks like you’ve got competition, Mister Thingy.”_

_...what a nickname._

_“I wouldn’t say ‘competition’,” Thingamabob looked over his shoulder at the man who spoke. “Who knows. Maybe if I run into him, the two of us could team up with other superheroes I know.”_

_The other man said, “So, like a league of incredible vegetables or somethin’, right?”_

_“Yeah, like that!”_

_The duo gave each other a simple glance and then returned their attention to the small tomato in front of them. Boy, this guy was pretty optimistic about Dormancer. In unison, “If you say so.”_

_Thingamabob nodded and allowed the two to cart away the fry thief. He had decided to keep the blanket as something to check out better once he got home. Who knows. Perhaps there was more on this simple article of material than the patch…_

_Meanwhile, as the hero of Solanum hopped onto his motorcycle, Dormancer himself watched him from atop the restaurant rooftop, his staff propped against the chimney. “So that’s Thingamabob, huh…” He reached over and grabbed his weapon, though kept his purple eyes on the motorcycle which drove further and further away from his sight._

 

_Joe was fast asleep as soon as he returned to the house, so Bob decided to visually examine and pick around the blanket at the living room couch, the television blaring the late evening news._

_He leaned over the blanket which was sprawled on the coffee table, magnifying glass in “hand” with scrunched eyebrows. “Nothing to see but the patch, but…”_

_On cue, his nose twitched. Bob shrunk the space between him and the blanket, shut his eyes, and then took a sniff of it. To his surprise, there was a pleasant scent to it._

_“It_ smells _nice. What on earth could it be? It’s sort of...flowery.”_

_All of a sudden, the small red mobile phone to the right of the table began to vibrate, almost making its owner jump in his seat._

_“The Thingamaphone…” He hurriedly swiped it into his hold and answered it, “Thingamabob here.”_

_“Thingamabob, it’s Mayor Lovely,” a familiar posh voice said on the other line. “You’re not busy at the moment, are you?”_

_“Well, not really, no. What’s going on?”_ _  
_ _“There have been calls of concern about a strange purple mist in and around Downey’s just now. A few of our officers tried entering the facility; however, a portion of them fainted and appear to be in a state of sleep! Apparently, some of the patrons are in a similar situation as well!”_

_He rose. “Wait, did you say that they were asleep?”_

_“Well, yes.”_ _  
_ _“...I think I have a guess about what this could be.”_  
_“You don’t think it could be that unusual Dormancer fellow going after_ civilians, do you?”

 _He hurried into his bedroom, cradling the phone against his ear. “I don’t want to assume so soon, but the fact that sleep had something to do with it makes me wonder if he’s connected to it somehow.” Once he approached his bed, he reached underneath it and yanked out a large suitcase, one which he trusted for_ years _, and one which contained his beloved mechanical arms (and of course the rest of his outfit). “I’ll find out soon enough, mayor. I’ll update asap.”_

_He threw on his outfit, and soon he was Thingamabob. The tomato crept into Joe’s room, woke him and told him that he had to leave real quick and to stay up until he returned. As much as he wanted to call someone over to watch him just in case, Bob knew he didn’t have much time to do so._

_“I’ll be back soon, little guy. Love you,” Bob whispered before slipping out of the backyard door._

_“Stay safe, Dad,” Joe responded with a small smile. “Good luck!”_

 

 

 

 _Thingamabob sped down the road -- though making certain he was still in the speed limit -- as he began to ponder how to approach the nightclub without being caught. Of course, crossing from one roof to Downey’s own was_ one _option. He could try pinpointing the “purple mist” from above._

_Yeah, that should be good._

_When the superhero grew closer and closer to the establishment, he could feel his heart pounding more frequently. Boy, if he had actual palms, they would’ve been sweaty. Thankfully, his robo-hands couldn’t produce sweat._

_He pulled to the sidewalk, directly across from Downey’s and joined the seven or so police officers who stood by. They seemed quite...hesitant about getting any closer to the nightclub, for they almost had their backs against the wall behind them and their eyes darting from Downey’s to Thingamabob._

_...guess they weren’t used to seeing something like this._

_‘_ Okay anxiety _,’ Thingamabob thought, ‘_ stay low. I need to handle this situation… _’_

_He hopped over to the group. “So, what’s happening?”_

_“To be a short but descriptive as possible,” one answered, “a bouncer noticed a purple mist surrounding the outside of the building, and then a few calls from inside said the mist was also indoors. People inside, apparently, started passing out. We sent a few of our people inside and...well, all we hear is snoring whenever we try contacting them on their walkie-talkies!”_

_That helped a bit._

_Thingamabob nodded. “Got it. I’ll take care of this, don’t worry.”_

_Keeping his eyes on the building, the hero of Solanum darted off, choosing to slip into the back entrance of Downey’s._

 

 

* * *

 

 

**_..._ **

 

* * *

 

 

 

         Back to present time and to another person…

 

         The sounds of confused, distant murmuring was what awoke Dormancer, just then realizing he had dozed off like he hoped for; however, he unfortunately forgot what happened whenever he fell into a deep enough sleep.

         Someone from the building he managed to stay on without falling cried, “Was that an earthquake?!”

         Another person went, “Talk about snoring loud enough to shake a place. Geez!”

         Similar shouts continued as Dormancer stood with his cheeks burning red from embarrassment. “Shoot...”

         Welp, time to run off before things escalated.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

         There we go, much better.

         Dormancer was now relaxing on the roof of his former establishment -- Nezzer’s Bar and Grill it was known as -- and as far away as he was from his previous location.

         He sighed.

         “I almost forgot about the side-effect.”

         Dormancer sat back, pulling his staff close to himself. Sure, he didn’t have to carry the thing around, but, it felt oddly comforting while he was out and about. Besides, it was a good idea to have it out if needed rather than having to quickly “will” it into his possession.

         “I’ll stay here for a few minutes,” he said but quiet enough to where only _he_ could hear, “and then go home and sleep without causin’ ruckus.”

         He fell silent and listened to the typical sounds heard from the outside of a packed restaurant at night -- basically, chattering, laughter, dishes clanking against other things, stuff that -- the more he listened to it, the more Nezzer felt a small twinge at his heart.

         “This place is in good hands,” he reminded himself, “there’s nothing to worry about.”

         As much as he tried to assure his thoughts, he still couldn’t help it.

         Dormancer arose once again. “I should leave now. Can’t go to bed sad after all.”

         Suddenly, the familiar soft blue glow from his amulet grabbed his attention. He looked down at it. Hmm, it was starting to blink.

         “The trouble’s nearby…”

         All the man of dormancy had to do was hop over to the edge of the roof and peer down. He immediately saw what the trouble could be.

  


* * *

 

 

 

         In the parking lot of the restaurant...

         Jerry approached the passenger side of car, humming under his breath after a night out with his brother, Jimmy. Where was Jimmy? Well, he had to dash off to the bathroom for a moment and suggested Jerry to warm up the car.

         Now, usually, Jerry would be okay with it; however, it was rather dark outside with far away streetlamps giving him only an insignificant amount of light, and the atmosphere warping from lively and bright to eerily quiet and almost dark...well…

         It frankly scared him. (Yes, he admitted, he could be easily spooked at times, but that was besides the point.)

         “I don’t like this,” the gourd mumbled as he whipped out the keys from his fluffy red jacket. “I should’ve stayed inside.”

         “Hi, excuse me!”

         A woman’s perky voice spoke from behind him, causing him to jump and whip around, his eyes big. Indeed, it was a lady standing there -- a corn lady in a simple brown fur jacket and blue dress, smiling at him.

         “Um…” he awkwardly looked off to the side and then back to her, responding with a simple, “hi.”

         “So, this is gonna sound sudden, but,” the woman said with her smile remaining in place, “my car broke down, and I was wondering if you could drop me off at my place real quick. It’s not far from here.”

         Jerry blinked. “Oh.” His eyes glanced to the side again in thought, wondering what on earth he should say. _Jimmy_ would’ve been a-okay, but _him_? Not really. This lady was a complete stranger! And the thought that he had no idea what she could be made him even question this situation more--

         She was inches away from him when he returned his stare which made his heart stop for a second. Scary...

         Jerry’s mind echoed, ‘ _Scary._ ’

         The corn lady spoke innocently, “ _Please_?”

         “I...um…”  
         “I’ll make sure to make it worth your time. Maybe some money, or a coffee!”  
         “Well I’ve gotta...w--wait for Jimmy and see what he has to say--”

         “Oh.” She blinked. “How about this…”

         Jerry felt a prod at his chest. He looked down to see what it could’ve been--

         --and turned pale. If he had feet right about now, they would’ve felt ice cold at the sight of the knife that had the very end of its blade on him. One bad move, and he could be stabbed by this person.

         “You hand over all the money you’ve got on you, and then give me the keys to your car so I can drive _myself_. Does that sound better, cutie pie?”

         Jerry gulped hard. “Ah…” he breathed out as his poor body began to tremble, “ _ahh…_ ”

          **_Ding-a-ling._ **

         A mobile hung over the heads of the two, low enough to where they easily noticed the chiming item. Jerry focused his enlarged eyes on something behind the woman while she turned and cranked her head upwards. Her mouth hung open, but only half-way.

         There was a large figure hidden within a purple cloak, holding out a staff which held the mobile.

         The corn lady was the first person to break the silence that had formed, saying, “Oh, um…” She shoved her knife back into her coat pocket. “I wasn’t trying to cause trouble or anything, Mister...whatever you are.”

         Dormancer quirked a brow, annoyed at that lie. “Uh-huh. Why did you have a knife against that boy a second ago while demanding for his money _and_ his car then?”

         She flinched. Drat, that creepy man was watching? “I…” she struggled to find her words.

         Meanwhile, as the corn lady attempted to compose a defense, Dormancer looked to Jerry who stared back nervously. He jerked his head towards the restaurant twice. Jerry gulped quietly, but complied with a nod before fleeing from the unwinding scene.

         “You _what_?”  
         “I...wouldn’t hurt a fly!”

         As much as she wanted to run off -- probably like what her latest victim did, if she had to take a guess -- she couldn’t seem to move the lower portion of her body! Who the heck was this guy?!

         Dormancer didn’t take the first fib to heart, and he definitely wasn’t going to accept the woman’s second one at all. He leaned down...down enough to where she couldn’t help but stare into his purple eyes with uneasiness. “I know _that’s_ a lie if I ever did hear one, Ana.”

         Ana, the corn woman, was frightened for sure. “How did you know my name?”

         He did not respond to her pathetic demand. In fact, all he did was lean in closer, watching as Ana’s eyes fill up with a purple mist. “You seem tense,” Dormancer instead said. “I think you should have a rest…”

         Oh boy, she was seeing double, and her head felt lighter and lighter by the second. What was going on? “I…” she murmured, “what…?”

         “By the way, you were the last person I _ever_ wanted to bump into. I hope this won’t happen again either...” he paused and then lowered his voice, “not _only_ because of what you were doing just now, but also because of how you treated a certain somebody _you said you loved_.”

         And then, Ana, before she had another chance to defend her honor, fell to the ground, snoring immediately upon contact.

         Dormancer fell quiet, looking down at her sleeping form. Why did it have to be _her_ of all people? He could’ve sworn he felt bile rising to his throat thanks to her presence.  “Well,” he broke the moment of silence, “enjoy your day-long nap, Ana.”

  


 

         A police car grew closer to its destination after getting a call of an attempted robber (and carjacker); however, as the car entered the parking lot, Officer Scooter spoke up from the driver’s seat, “What on earth is _that_?!”

         His partner-of-the-week questioned, “You think it’s LarryBoy?”

         “No no, definitely not him! He’s too tall!”  
         “Then who could it be…?”

         Up ahead was a purple cloaked figure looking at a wrapped up body which sat against the car. All of a sudden, as if it heard the police car coming, the figure turned its head at their direction and--

          **_Poof!_ **

         A large puff of purple cloud exploded in the exact spot where the cloaked being was a second ago.

         Although that person was gone, Officer Scooter had an intuition on who that was.

         “Great Scott! I think that was...Dormancer!!”

 

 

* * *

 

 

**_to be continued_ **


	7. A Little Bit of Dormancing Part 2 ("Dormancing" Is Still Not A Word)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, we witness how Dormancer first met Thinamabob, a mayor from another city is there, oh...and whatever happened to those rapscallions from the first chapter...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took longer than expected! My computer is possibly dying, so I had to type the rest of this on my phone which...took a long time. :'B
> 
> Not sure when the next chapter will be done, so we'll have to wait and see! Thanks for reading!

* * *

  
  


         All was peaceful by the time a small mist slipped through the crack of the front door and then materialized into Nezzer. He let out a sigh of relief when he spotted Lunt still asleep on the couch. Hopefully, the short gourd didn’t wake up during the period Nezzer was out and about…

         Before he went off, he murmured a gentle, “G’night, Lunt,” to him.

  
  
  


         Nezzer made sure the door to his bedroom was shut and locked completely, so Lunt wouldn’t attempt going in there…

         ...because that’s not where he slept, not anymore, anyway.

         Once he triple-checked the door’s security, he nodded in approval, and hopped away. He passed his dear bunnies’ room, not surprised to see them all asleep, and went straight ahead to the single door all the way down the hallway.

         When Nezzer reached the door, he looked over his shoulder, expecting someone to be there. Yeah, he could’ve used his mist teleportation thing, but he didn’t have much energy at the moment to do that.

         As fast yet cautious as he was with opening the door, he slipped inside, shut the door, and locked it. He turned his body around, facing the flight of stairs. Nezzer hopped down them without worrying about making noises.

         This was his basement which now served as his new bedroom.

         The walls that were once regular wood were now padded up with grey soundproof foam all around. Meanwhile, the floor under Nezzer’s “feet” was of carpet instead of concrete in order to give the environment a welcoming feel to it. Various lights hung from the wall, spread out to where no corners were left in the dark.

         Nezzer stretched and yawned as he hopped to the wardrobe. He quickly changed out of his costume and into a simple pair of pajamas.

         “I just realized,” he said to himself, climbing into bed with a grunt, “almost forgot earlier when I tried sleeping in my room that I get...noisy. Lunt would’ve found out something wasn’t right if I stayed up there…”

         He huffed, feeling rather disappointed in himself, and plopped back.

         “Stupid me.”

         As for once morning arrived, Nezzer needn’t worry about Lunt wondering where he was or why he didn’t respond to the persistent knockings at his former bedroom door. The reason being is that while Lunt slept until ten or eleven in the morning, Nezzer was used to awaking by nine or even eight thanks to his telemarketing job, so he’ll be wide awake and upstairs by the time Lunt just got up.

         He let out another yawn; although, this one was much louder and longer. The large man had a feeling sleep was about to claim him.

         “The local news feed is might be pretty active in the morning thanks to me...” Nezzer commented in thought. “Might have had more coverage though, but thanks to a certain iron man with robotic hands that didn’t happen...again.”

         Once more, Nezzer yawned.

         And so, the next thing the possessor of dormancy knew, he dozed off, and his mind decided to tease him more with how Thingamabob confronted him back in Solanum.

 

* * *

 

**_Flashback galore..._ **

* * *

 

 

_          Nezzer sighed loudly, frowning as he laid on his back in bed while the loud music right outside continued to play at an obnoxiously high volume. There was a nightclub called Downey’s which had special events five times a month, and...well, guess what. Tonight was one of those five days. What made tonight annoying to Nezzer, though was how exhausted he felt after doing dormancy stuff quite a lot before deciding to retire for the night.  _

_          Heh, the police were probably still driving around and discovering the snoozing crooks, and then it would be all over the news tomorrow. _

_          But anyway, the problem was fairly simple: Nezzer was worn out and just wanted rest, but try as he might, he couldn’t! Sure, he soundproofed his house, but that only blocked his darn monstrous snoring from being heard from his neighbours, not block sounds coming from  _ outside _! _

_          He groaned and sat up. “They’re being extra noisy out of all the days…” _

_          Nezzer pulled his “knees” to his chest while his purple eyes glanced to the window beside him. It looked pretty outside with the bright lights, both in the sky and from the buildings and streetlights below; however, the noisy cars, people, and blaring music right where Downey’s was...that was a whole ‘nother story. _

_          He snatched his pillow from behind him and then shoved his face into the soft material, groaning yet again. “A headache...that’s just what I need. Now I  _ know _ I need to get some sleep soon.” _

_          Wait, what time was it anyway? Everything felt like a blur when he finally arrived home… _

_          He lifted his head, then picked up the alarm clock beside him on the end table, and checked the time. “Midnight...of  _ course _.” Nezzer returned his face into the pillow’s comforting embrace. _

_          What should he do? Earplugs wouldn’t even suffice in this situation of sorts! _

_          … _

_          ...no, he couldn’t do  _ that _ , could he? _

_          Slowly, he pulled his head up with the sudden idea chiming louder and louder as the music continued to blast its sweet tunes from Downey’s. His purple eyes shot to the window while he felt a tug at his lips. Was it a smile? A straight line of determination? _

_          Whichever it was, Nezzer soon jumped out of bed, and grabbed the amulet off his bathroom counter. Before even thinking about tossing on his attire, he placed the amulet around his neck as he recounted for the umpteenth time what he could do with this thing. _

_          “It helped me fly a few times,” he said, fixing up his long cloak, “but...I wonder if I can get around any other way so I won’t be spotted as easily…” _

_          It was odd if he ever were to say this out loud, but, something was beckoning him to the window. Perhaps it was his conscious, or the pretty amulet which dangled about from his neck...heck, maybe it was both of them. Never did Nezzer figure it out. _

_          When Nezzer reached the window, his eyes immediately fell upon Downey’s, that dang place. It was nice in the morning and afternoon, but once night rolled in, that place was a party until the sun rose! _

_          Okay, so to people like Lunt, he was being a party pooper, but...it was late, and people needed their sleep, and by god he was gonna make those people  _ sleep _! _

_          “...you know what,” he said out loud. “I think I’ll pay them a visit with that  _ one ability _ I learned about a few days ago…” _

_          Nezzer’s body began to lift off the ground, but only a few inches, whilst a purple mist slowly rose from the ground and enveloped him. Surprisingly, he could still see everything-- _

_          His body lurched right at the window against his will; however, instead of crashing through or into it, he felt a light weight pressing him from atop and underneath just in time to slip under a crack of the window. It was like he was...was paper-thin! No, no, not even paper thin.  _ He _ was the mist that surrounded him a moment ago! _

_          Nezzer, in this weird mist form, was outside of his residence. His body slid down the long building at the speed of light. Window by window, level by level. Zig-zag he went as he approached the ground and then across a streetwalk, darting around any pedestrians who didn’t appear to notice his presence and went on to their destinations. Flashing lights were present and scattered about, both colorful and plain lights to be precise. _

_          The movement continued on, and the longer this experience was, the sooner Nezzer felt this was a wild rollercoaster ride (or how a very fast snake would feel)...he had never used it for places far from him, so this was a new experience. _

_          All of a sudden, there was a sharp right turn, followed by a brief shot forward, and then a left turn. _

_          And that was it. He materialized back, the mist fading to the ground until it was no more. _

_          There Dormancer stood at the back entrance of Downey’s, his vision trying to recover after...well,  _ that _. He glanced around at his surroundings (and might or might not have heard the obnoxiously noisy music returning to his clogged ears) and, yep, this was indeed Downey’s. He’s been back here before after having a bit too much to drink in one setting and couldn’t reach the restroom in time to “empty his stomach”. _

_          Speaking of “emptying his stomach”... _

_          “I’m glad I haven’t eaten lately,” Dormancer mumbled as hopped to a corner and poked his head out, “because I’m pretty sure I would’ve thrown up by now…like the first time I did it.” _

_          Hmm, quite a lot of cars in the lot and at the sidewalks closer to the establishment. Unsurprising, really. _

_          He pulled back. “My mobile will be too quiet to use it here,” Dormancer began to evaluate his options, “the eyes would only work on whoever’s close enough to see ‘em, so…” _

_          Dormancer’s purple eyes trailed over to the door. _

_          “The sleeping mist will have to do.” _

_          Simply opening the door would cause attention by anybody, so the man of dormancy willed himself again into his mist form, slipped into the door’s side crack, and slithered across the floor as low as he could go. He needed to find a good spot to release the dormancy vapor without being seen by the party-goers. _

_          Ah-ha! _

_          There, right by the end of the dancefloor sat several fog machines, used for a more cool and “hip” atmosphere on this night. Right beside them were curtains which were pretty much there for the heck of it. Boy,  _ this _ was convenient. _

_          He slithered over and then returned to his physical form amidst the curtains. Huh, his attire appeared to practically blend with the material hiding him from the partying patrons… _

_          Anyway, time to set things in motion. _

_          Dormancer shut his eyes and allowed his body to relax. He inhaled a long, slow breath through his nostrils while he felt a familiar sensation building up within his lungs by the moment. _

_          Finally, Dormancer opened his eyes and parted his lips. The purple vape slithered from his mouth, floated to the ground, and drifted to the awaiting fog machines. An amused smile tugged at the zucchini’s lip when his mist was momentarily sucked up and then released through the fog machines. _

_          It didn't take long for the vapor to scatter and work its effects on the partygoers. Dormancer spotted a couple of people yawn at a nearby table, then he glanced elsewhere and spotted a man nodding off at the bar counter, and before he had a chance to blink, a young man on the dance floor began to wobble mid-dance before falling over with a yawn. Other patrons followed, some landing on the floor, some on the counter, and even in the seats they were in! _

_          Not surprising to Dormancer, a couple of people panicked about the unexpected event happening. While some people ran out the front doors just as the mist reached that area, others ran into the bathroom whilst a few dropped like flies mid-hop. This scene repeated about one more time, and once it ended, the only noise remaining was the music and a pinch of snoring that was drowned by said tunes. _

_          “Much better…” Dormancer smiled to himself. Since he wasn't concerned about being spotted now, he stepped out and checked out the sight from a better spot. He picked up the concerned talking from the bathrooms to the left of him; however, it was expected, so it wasn't a concern to him as well. Besides, he was about to depart before the police would arrive and try to capture him somehow... _

_          ...which wouldn't  _ ever  _ happen. _

_          He would use that mist ability to make a fast getaway as a precaution, though. _

_          His smile softened. “Goodnight,” he bid the slumbering forms adieu before he calmly hopped back the way he came. _

_          What greeted him once he exited Downey’s was a nice breeze. Dormancer jumped and landed on the roof. He needed a moment before he went home... _

_          He inhaled, taking in the fresh air, and then exhaled through his mouth. _

_          “Now I'll be able to sleep in peace…” _

_          All of a sudden, a loud thump from behind him sounded. _

_          Dormancer spun around and saw a small figure facing him from a few feet away. By the look of it, the figure had robotic arms with fingers which were just  _ itching  _ to do something soon. Dormancer knew right away who this partly masked person was: Solanum’s very own- _

_          “Thingamabob,” he said with a half smile. “Nice to finally meet you.” _

_          “Dormancer,” Thingamabob inquired in all seriousness, not fazed by the words, “did you knock out all of those people?” _

_          “ _ Knock out _? You make it sound like I went around and whacked everybody in the head just to be mean. I'm not a villain, and I didn't hurt a soul in there.” _

_          “So what would you call it?” _

_          “I made them fall asleep. They'll wake up by eleven or twelve, don't worry.” _

_          Thingamabob huffed. “You know what you did  _ was  _ something a crook would do, don't you?” _

_          Dormancer shrugged. “I didn't hurt them. I just felt that these people needed to get their sleep…” he then added with a small sigh, “like what  _ I  _ was trying to do.” _

_          “You  _ still _ did something to innocent civilians.” He took two hops towards Dormancer. “Listen, you can just explain yourself to the police, though I have no idea how they'd react to your reasoning since we all were thinking you were a superhero.” _

_          Dormancer’s smile widened a tad, his brows raising. “You mean like what you are?” _

_          “Well...yeah.” _

_          He bowed his head and then looked to Thingamabob again. “Don't bother trying to catch someone like me when you've got actual criminals out there to stop. That's what superheroes do instead of goin’ after small fry.” Dormancer's purple eyes softened. “Anyway, I should be going now...goodnight, Thingamabob! Hope to run into you in the future.” _

_          Dormancer turned to leave from Thingamabob’s sight… _

_          Only for Thingamabob to be standing there, glaring up at him. _

_          “...how did you  _ do _ that?” _

_          “Does it matter at the moment?” _

_          Welp... _ this _ tomato was persistent. Time to hold him off. _

_          “I  _ really  _ need to sleep, and as much as I'd like to talk to you more,” Dormancer shifted his cloak and immediately had his staff out in the open, saying, “I think we should postpone it for the time being, so…” _

_          He whipped it to the right. _

_          “ _ please move _ \--” _

_          A robotic hand captured the staff as soon as Dormancer swung it. Dormancer was taken aback for a second but quickly recovered and began to engage in taking back his staff from the struggling tomato who now used his other robotic hand to assist him. _

_          Dormancer yanked, and Thingamabob held in a yelp by the strength pulling him forward. The zucchini heard a faint mechanical buzz, and before he could register that it was Thingamabob's fast fingers, Dormancer felt himself being flung off to the side, his staff still in his position. _

_          This wasn't what Dormancer meant by holding Thinganabob off, but he would accept it instead of going after the town’s superhero like he could have. _

_          Dormancer quickly gathered up his mist around his body. When Thingamabob began to hurry over to where he landed, a small smile graces his lips as he simply said, “Goodnight, Thingamabob.” _

_          He vanished, much to Thingamabob's dismay. _

  
  


 

_          Nezzer sighed peacefully as he snuggled back in bed and shut his eyes. “That was eventful…” he murmured just before he felt himself slip into sleep...with _ out _ the loud music blaring from Downey’s. _

 

* * *

 

 

_End of flashback..._

 

* * *

 

__

__ “Mayor Ellen, do you really think he took a vacation like you told him to?”

__ The small female gourd at the mahogany desk hummed and fell back against her seat. “I know he did even though he didn't want to at first,” she admitted to her carrot secretary.

__ At that moment, the secretary shifted in place, glancing off to the side. “True, but...well…” she murmured, a blush creeping across her cheeks.

__ Mayor Ellen instantly caught on. With a quirked brow, she sat forward, her fringe flying to either side in the process. “What? What is it?”

__ She looked to the small mayor. “I...was watching the Bumblyburg News and...spotted him in the background…”

__ “Oh?”

__ “In costume.”

__ “... _ oh _ .”

__ While Mayor Ellen grumbled to herself from annoyance, the secretary added, “Apparently some fellow called ‘Dormancer' tried crashing a party. He just so happened to be at said party somehow, so...it's...not really  _ his _ fault.”

__ She stopped and then sighed. “True. He's just doing what a superhero does.”

__ “Maybe you could call him later.”

__ “Good suggestion. He needs to be extra careful with what he does for a while after all.”

 

* * *

 

_          Meanwhile… _

__ Trey held in a yawn as he stretched on the top bunk bed. “How many more days until they let us out again…?”

__ Duri, from the bottom bed, sat up and answered, “Five.”

__ Yeah...this city was light on sentences for petty thieves.  _ Shockingly _ light.

__ An annoyed groan from Trey told Duri those five days were going to be long and a pain in the butt thanks to the jail they were temporarily residing in. “It'll go by before you know it.”

__ “Easy for  _ you _ to say.”

__ “...at least that Dormancer guy didn't beat us up, and we got to sleep at a hospital instead of here.”

__ “Dude scared the  _ crap _ outta me,” Trey scoffed.

__ Then, from outside their cell, someone spoke up, “Before I go, mind informing me a little about this ‘Dormancer' you two have been going on about since you got here?”

__ The two looked over at their cell gate in unison.

__ Duri spoke up first, “You're getting out today, Juan?”

__ The tall scallion with the purple eyeshadow and a faint cut on his left cheek hummed with a nod. “I've been here for almost two and a half weeks, remember?”

         “Oh right. Attempted robbery.”

         Trey spoke up next, “Are ya asking that as a heads up?”

         Juan shrugged. “Perhaps...perhaps not, Trey.” He pressed the side of his body against the cell door, a sly smile gracing his lips. “We'll see. Now, tell me what you know...and I mean every bit of info.”

 

* * *

 

**_to be continued..._ **


	8. The Day After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “And there you have it. Looks like a collaboration between cities in order to interrogate the cloaked man of sleep is happening! Let's hope our own LarryBoy, and Solanum’s Thingamabob, can stop Dormancer before things get out of hand,” the news girl concluded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy crap, I'm sorry it's been a while since I've updated. I had writer's block and some things offline happening which caused the mini hiatus.
> 
> Anyway, I'm not entirely sure how many chapters are left, exactly...but I know it's around 3 or 4 chapters at least. Maybe less. We'll see. :B  
> Thank you for sticking around!

         He didn't even have to open his eyes in order to find out what time it was since the rays of the rising sun teased his face through the window which was partly covered by Nezzer’s tv entertainment system. Lunt grunted and then flipped onto his side, facing away from the lights.

         Man, having the rays on his back made him feel more sleepy!

         He nuzzled his face into the pillow (not surprised that a certain person gave him that along with a blanket) and felt himself eeeease back to sleep--

         The familiar chime of his cellphone snapped him out of his dazed state of sleepiness, much to the surprise _and_ displeasure of the decorative gourd. Surprise due to the fact that someone calling him at this unholy hour...and displeasure be _cause_ someone had the audacity to do that.

         Well, it wasn't his S-Cape phone ringing, but Lunt had a feeling he'd still regret not answering his “civilian phone” right away.

         Lunt rolled onto his other side, whipping out a cellphone from underneath the blanket during the process. When he saw the name plastered on the screen, he definitely knew he needed to answer.

          _Beep._

         “Hey Ellen,” he said as soon as he swiped the 'answer' button, “how's it hanging?”

         Mayor Ellen asked without missing a beat, “Lunt, are you keeping the movements to a minimum while you're on vacation? Be honest.”

         “I am.”

         “You sure?”

         He sighed through his nostrils. “I'm sure. Besides,” Lunt questioned as he rose from the couch, “it's just a flesh wound. Not _that big_ of a problem…”

         It was Ellen's turn to sigh. “If you say so. Just be careful, alright? Even the smallest of injuries can be an issue, after all.”

         “Got’cha.”

         “Also...behave yourself while you're in Bumblyburg.”

         Lunt entered the bathroom and took a look at himself in the mirror. He casually brushed the fringe of his short hair to the right. “How come you're telling me that?”

         “Probably ‘cause my secretary spotted you in the background on the news last night.”

         “...oh.”

         “Anyway, I need to go. There's a meeting in a few minutes.”

         He noticed the faint cut on his nose and stared at it for a second, then he glanced at the phone cradled against his ear and responded with, “See ya, Ellen. Have fun with your mayoral stuff.”

         Before she hung up, Ellen chuckled. “I'll try to. Bye, Lunt.”

         Lunt was alone with his thoughts now, though it wasn't much at the moment. Just...basically checking out his reflection after a disappointing but eventful night.

         He attempted to look at his shoulder, his right one to be exact. Unsurprisingly, he could only see a small portion of the bandage, the rest he would have to see by turning his back to the mirror, but...eh. That gun graze wasn't as a big of a concern like Ellen believed it was.

         Lunt ripped off the bandage with a wince and holding in a yell by gritting his teeth together. “Time for a fresh bandage.”

 

 

         A few seconds and one bandage change later, Lunt emerged from the bathroom. He was about to head back into the living room but then paused when his eyes darted to Nezzer's bedroom.

         “Man, old fella must've been wiped out from last night,” Lunt said out loud. He shrugged. “Eh, I won't wake ‘im up. Not like he has to work today. Besides,” he added as he began to hop off, “it's kinda nice knowin’ he's getting sleep again.”

 

* * *

**_Meanwhile..._ **

* * *

 

         With a long, slooow stretch and a yawn through his nose, Alfred awoke. To nobody's surprise, those special drinks he guzzled (on his _birthday_ to boot!) left a minor headache behind as divine punishment.

         “Bother…” he whispered as he arose. “I better take something to remedy this headache.”

         The British butler prepared to climb out of bed before he finally noticed a certain out-of-costume hero snoozing beside him.

         A small smile crept to his face. “Sleeping in as always, Master Larry. Don't worry, you can stay there,” Alfred said to him. “At least until _duty_ calls, of course.”

 

 

          _Swiiish_ , the closet door slid open.

         Alfred’s smile faltered. “Oh…” he poked his head inside as his brows furrowed. “Did I...forget to do _my_ laundry? I appear to not have any suits!”

         He sighed.

         “Just this once...I will have to be out of uniform. What on earth to toss on until my suits are clean though?”

         Alfred forced himself further into the closet, and it didn't take him long to find a top to wear. “Oh...this.” He wasn't surprised by it, but Alfred certainly had nearly forgotten of its existence. He removed the shirt from the hanger it was on with care and pulled it to himself. “I suppose this wouldn't hurt for the time being.”

         He fell quiet.

         The tall man let out a sigh and pressed his face against the top.

         “Mm...cherry blossom-scented.”

 

* * *

 

 

         Bob couldn't wipe away the fond smile on his face as he pulled the sheet back up so Joe wouldn't get cold.

         Wait…

         His nose twitched and brows knitted together. “I guess Alfred’s up and making breakfast...unless Larry can cook now.”

         Bob doubted Larry could cook at all.

         The tomato went down the steps on time with his stomach growling upon the scent of delicious bacon, eggs, and perhaps coffee drifting from the kitchen.

         He crossed through the living room, turned right, and entered the kitchen. Alfred was at the stove, scooping some strips of bacon onto a plate to the left of him. The British man wasn't wearing a suit like he had seen him in every single time prior to this meeting.

         Bob mutely cleared his throat and then spoke, “Morning, Alfred!”

         Alfred turned with his right eye shut, wincing through a small smile. “Good morning, Mister Bob.”

         “Are...you okay? You seem off.”

         “I've a minor headache and a slight sensitivity to sound. It's called a _consequence_ for the drinks I had at the party yesterday.”

         Bob frowned. “Oh...sorry to hear that.”

         Alfred laughed lightly, waving it off. “Don't worry, I'll be avoiding coffee and simply have plenty of water and juice to remedy this hangover. I've…” he paused to chuckle from embarrassment, “done this before, back in Cambridge... _several times_.”

         He quirked a brow at this. “Cambridge…”

         Whilst Bob took a seat at the table as he chimed, “My hometown!”

         “...England, right?”

         “Precisely. Now, quick question: are you a vegetarian?”

         Bob chuckled. “Oh come on, I've had dinner here as Thingamabob. You know I'm not one!”

         “That's true,” Alfred responded in time with placing a plate of bacon, eggs, and toast in front of the tomato. “Just making certain that your preference hasn't changed since the last time you've eaten here. Coffee, tea, or water?”

         “I...guess I'll have coffee. Thanks, Alfred.”

         There was a feeling of “awkwardness” which bubbled within Bob's stomach upon the name drop of his superhero title. Gosh, he had hoped sleeping over out-of-costume would've made him feel comfortable waltzing about the estate like this.

         After a silent prayer, Bob picked up his cup of coffee, sipped it, and then sighed through his nostrils.

         “Are _you_ feeling alright?”

         “Hm?”

         Alfred joined him at the table with his food and a glass of water, staring at him with both eyes. “Your hold on your cup is shaky…”

         Bob looked down on cue to see that, yep, his cup shook in his unstable hold. “Oh, uh…” he placed it on the table, “yeah. I guess I still feel a bit exposed after last night is all. Considering the last time you and Larry saw me as Bob was during my--”

         “LarryBoy obsession?” Alfred made a small, sly grin. “We remember, Bob. Don't worry,” he assured him, “it's all in the past! Besides…” the British man sipped his water and then finished, saying, “you learnt your lesson...and even became a superhero yourself over in Solanum!”

         Bob felt the back of his neck heat up while a half smile formed. “True.”

         “See?” Alfred swapped his drink for a fork and jabbed at his eggs. “You don't have to worry about anything.”

         He blinked. “Well, to change the topic,” Bob gestured to Alfred’s attire, asking, “Where's your suit? You practically sleep in it.”

         Alfred blushed hard. “I forgot to do my laundry…”

 

* * *

 

 

         Larry was wide awake and checking his cellphone. Nothing on the LarryBoy Mobile...time to check his regular one.

           _Nada_.

         He fell back against the pillow and stared at the screen. “Don't feel like getting up yet,” the cucumber mumbled, his brows furrowing.

         That was when a waft of air entered his nostrils.

         Larry shot up, his nose twitching like a bunny’s as the heavenly scent intensified. Alfred's cooking was the reason why he rolled out of bed and tossed on a simple grey sweater before hopping out of the room.

         “Hi, Larry.”

         There, poking his head out of a guest room was Joe, staring up at him with half-lid eyes.

         “Hey Joe!” Larry hopped over to him. “Slept okay?”

         “Uh-huh…”

         “Is Bob still sleepin’?”

         “Nuh-uh.”

         ‘ _Probably downstairs with Alfred_ ,’ he thought. “Hey, you're still wearing your costume, aren't you…”

         Joe nodded and stepped out of the bedroom.

         “No worries, I can let you wear some extra clothes I've got lyin’ around.” Larry then added with a shrug, “Probably gonna sag on ya, though.”

 

* * *

 

 

         Bob was close to being done with his coffee as he noticed Alfred making a second plate of food. “That for Larry?”

         Alfred nodded, sat the filled plate at the table, and then grabbed a second one. “Does Joe eat any of this?”

         A small smile crossed his lips. “He eats just about everything. Thanks, Alfred.”

         On cue with the next plate sat down, Joe hopped into the room in a long blue top while Larry entered seconds later.

         “Mornin’ Bob! Mornin’ Alfred,” the cucumber greeted them.

         “Morning, Master Larry!”

         “Good morning, Larry.”

         “Morning, Dad,” Joe immediately said, sitting beside him with a smile.

         Bob chuckled, returning the smile. “I'm surprised you didn't sleep in longer, little guy.”

         Larry, meanwhile, approached Alfred who was turning off the stove. Huh, he wasn't wearing a suit...that's different. The heck was _that_ shirt, anyway?

         “Hey, birthday boy.”

         “Come now, Master Larry...it's March the fourteenth! My birthday was yesterday!”

         Larry smirked at him, teasingly. “Still have some presents waiting for you.”

         “Honestly,” he huffed as his cheeks turned a faint shade of crimson, “you spoil me sometimes.”

         Larry kept his eyes on Alfred when the Brit quickly grabbed his empty plate off the table as to not disturb Bob and Joe. “So...what's with the new attire?”

         Alfred faced him, chuckling sheepishly. “Awkward thing...I forgot to do my laundry. Apparently, I don't have much outside of suits, so I've decided to wear this until my clothes are done.”

         He blinked, humming in thought as he looked at the front of the collared shirt and then the backside.

         Wait, what was written on the back of his shirt?

          _Persimmon_.

         Larry’s stomach dropped, and the hero was taken aback with minor confusion. “Persimmon…?”

         Alfred heard the tiny voice reading the back of his shirt with ease. All he did was nod, turning away for a brief moment in order to place his dish in the sink.

         Before Larry said something else, Bob rose from his seat with a cough to clear his throat. “Thanks for the food, Alfred. It was great.”

         Alfred grabbed the empty plate from him, giving the tomato a smile. “Quite welcome, Bob!”

         “I'm guessing the news should be on right about now,” he suddenly said.

         Larry joined in on the conversation, checking his phone for a second, “Says it's ten o’clock, so, yeah.”

         Bob let out a small sigh. “I'm gonna check and see what they say about last night...about Dormancer.”

         Larry nodded. “I'll join ya in a sec.”

         “Alright.” Before Bob hopped out of the kitchen, he turned to his son and told him, “Take your time eating, Joe.”

         What he received in return was a muffled “ ‘kay” from the young boy.

         Alfred went to the table, his back facing Larry. “Joe, would you like to have something to drink?”

         “Um...I wouldn't mind some milk.”

         “Alright.”

         Alfred went past Larry and to the fridge to retrieve some milk.

         Larry took another good look at the top and, finally, chose to ask, “Persimmon, as in... _Montgomery_ , right…?”

         “Unfortunately, for the both of us, yes…” Alfred responded as he poured the milk and placed it in front of Joe, “Montgomery Persimmon.”

         “You...wanna wear somethin’ of mine? I've got some smaller clothes you could wear instead,” he offered with a small smile.

         Alfred fell quiet, his eyes going downcast. For a few seconds, the only sounds which could be heard were Joe finishing his breakfast and the news playing on the television from the living room.

         At last, the British man spoke, “I...appreciate the offer, Master Larry, but,” he looked to him with a weak and very uncertain smile, “I feel like wearing this for a while, at least.”

         The way Alfred looked at him seemed... _off_ , concerning, and painfully familiar to one Alfred gave him years ago.

         Before Larry could utter an “oh” or assure him it was all right, Alfred lowered his voice and confessed, “ _Larry_...I'm afraid I haven't truly gotten over the events like I believed.”

         Larry frowned.

         “I had to hurry inside a restroom stall last night as soon as I took a good gander at myself in that outfit,” he continued. “I felt... _something_ when I found this shirt in my closet. It was a mixture of disgust, fear, and _hurt_.” Alfred tugged at the collar of his top. “However, even though I feel this way, a part of me still likes…” his voice trailed off.

         Quietly, Larry said, “...Alfred?”

         Alfred let out a sigh, and then finished, “A part of me still _loves_ him, Larry. I’m aware he felt that way towards me as well...up until the failed bank heist occurred, anyway.”

         “Love?” Larry blinked. “A--Alfred, when you said ‘love', did you mean like a friend...or a--?”

         Alfred faced his entire body towards the out-of-costume hero before he finished his sentence, for the last word was caught in his throat, as though it was a lump.

         The butler said not a word, his body didn't slump nor stiffen, and his eyes remained wide open and on Larry's form; however, Larry could spot how glassy the other man’s eyes became within a matter of seconds. Alfred glanced off to the kitchen entrance momentarily, and then he coughed into his shirt, clearing his throat.

         “Anyway!” Alfred all of a sudden burst into a bright grin. “Master Larry, you really should probably eat before your food gets cold. I promise it's something you _like_ eating. Granted, I was going to make an English breakfast, but a minor hangover scrambled my head, so I had to make do with something simplistic.”

         Larry scrunched his brows from confusion. “But--”

         “Wait, you should probably eat out in the living room, so you can see what they say about Dormancer. Here, I'll grab your things for you!”

         “But--”

          Alfred carefully handed a tray with Larry’s breakfast and coffee, interrupting him once again. “Here we are! Anyway, I'll be joining you fellows in a minute. Cleaning calls~...”

         Larry looked down at his food and then returned his stare to Alfred without his frown leaving. “Alfred,” he cautiously asked, worried, “you gonna be okay?”

         Alfred’s smile faltered…

         ...but just a smidge which lasted a split second before the Brit recovered.

         “I assure you, Master Larry,” he responded, “things shall be fine with me. Now go ahead and eat your food.”

         Larry sighed through his nostrils and then gave him a small smile. “Got’cha. My offer for a change of clothes still stands, by the way.”

         As Larry departed, Joe slowly hopped up to Alfred, grabbing the butler’s attention.

         “Ah, Joe! I apologise that you had to hear all of that! H--how was your breakfast?”

         Joe fidgeted in place. “It was good,” he answered with a faint smile. “Um,” he smile went away as he questioned, “are you okay, Alfred?”

         “O, I was simply,” Alfred leaned back against a countertop with a light laugh and a shrug, “remembering someone from a long time ago, and I became a bit sad about it,” he quickly added, “ _but_ , I'll be alright after a nice cup of peppermint tea and a hot shower.”

         “Oh...okay. Thank you for the food, Alfred.”

         “You're quite welcome.”

 

* * *

 

 

         Larry plopped on the couch right beside Bob, earning a grunt from the tomato upon their sides touching each other. “Did they say somethin’ about the Dormancer guy?” He nudged his head to the television as a commercial played.

         Bob swallowed the food in his mouth and then replied, “They finished talking about him at the community center, but…”

         “But…”

         “Apparently, he struck elsewhere hours later. It's ‘developing news’, so they haven't gotten to it yet.”

         He raises his brows. “Baddie? Civilian?”

         “Civilians,” Bob said, his blue eyes going to Larry, “although, one attempted stealing a car, and the other person almost robbed an innocent civilian...”

         “...what you're describing is more of a crook than a regular civilian, so...both victims were baddies?”

         “... _yes_ , Larry.”

         “Ah. Should've said ‘baddies', then.”

         Bob rolled his eyes.

         On cue, the local news returned with a young celery lady at the desk by herself, paper in her possession.

         “Welcome back to BLN at 10! I'm Maxie Celery, and Thomas is away on assignment.” She immediately brought in one of the main topics of this morning’s report, “If you're just joining us, the mysterious being -- known as Dormancer -- struck a party at Bumblyburg Community Center yesterday night. No one was harmed; however, the people who attended the party fell into a deep sleep and recently began to awake at several nearby hospitals.”

 

* * *

 

 

         Meanwhile, elsewhere, Lunt was gulping down a cup of coffee, watching the local news as well...

         “It is believed that, hours later, he went after criminals, one of whom was serial robber, Ana Cob of Perrysville.”

         The cup dropped to the ground, its warm contents spilling onto Nezzer’s carpet as the owner coughed a bit.

         Once the cough vanished, Lunt muttered out a quiet, “Dang it,” and fell back against the couch.

 

* * *

 

         “Because of the contact he made with innocent civilians, the question of Dormancer being a new superhero for Bumblyburg is now turning into which side is the cloaked figure on. For citizens here, the answer is rather mixed; however, for the mayor of Solanum, Lovely Asparagus, she has an idea.”

         The scenery switched to an older asparagus woman, dressed in a fancy dress shirt, sitting behind a desk with a pear woman standing beside her. There was a BLN microphone stretching out to Mayor Lovely Asparagus.

         “Bother, I had hoped that he had given up, truth be told,” she sighed. “At first, we assumed the same thing as everybody in Bumblyburg…” Her pretty brown eyes glanced off to the side. “However,” Lovely said, “he began going after people who weren't causing harm!”

         The woman beside the mayor joined in, “I feel like the bloke wants _anybody_ to sleep, not just a bunch of no-good-doers.”

          “It’s as though he's neither on the side of good _or_ bad, because he kept switching between going after criminals to civilians and vise versa until--”

         “The weird fellow up and left Solanum!”

         Maxie’s voice suddenly asked, “So, in the few months which your city dealt with him, Mayor Lovely, it's safe to say that we shouldn't wonder if he's good or bad, but rather who, where, and when he would strike?”

         The two women fell silent, blinking. They glanced to each other and then returned to the camera.

         Mayor Lovely shrugged, slowly responding with, “I... _guess_ that would be wise to do instead.”

         The lady beside her also shrugged. “Who knows. Maybe Thingamabob and LarryBoy might be able to catch him so we can find out why he did all of this.”

         “Exactly right, Penelope, my dear.”

         The camera returned to Maxie at the news desk.

         “And there you have it. Looks like a collaboration between cities in order to interrogate the cloaked man of sleep is happening! Let's hope our own LarryBoy, and Solanum’s Thingamabob, can stop Dormancer before things get out of hand,” she concluded.

         Larry repeated Maxie’s word, “Collaboratin’?”

         Bob sat back. “I guess we're going to work together to question him whenever he decides to show up again…” he paused and then murmured, “I wonder if I should call Mayor Lovely if she wants me to stay put or just come out here as soon as possible…”

         Larry watches Bob hop off the couch with a grunt. “I guess it'd make sense if you stayed here.”

         “True, though I wanna make sure that Solanum will be okay without me for a bit.”

         “Oh.”

         “Be right back,” Bob told him before leaving the room and into the hallway either for privacy or not to be talking over the news which could drop more information regarding Dormancer.

         Larry sighed through his nostrils, sitting against the couch as he glanced to the television. Looks like they were doing the weather now.

         He shifted his seating position until his lower torso was on the couch as well.

         Suddenly, Larry felt a familiar vibration go off which jolted him for a second. He whipped out both mobile phones. His Larry Mobile received a new text message from S-Cape.

         “Oh yeah, he's on vacation…” Larry said out loud, opening the message.

         [ _morning. Did you see the news just now or you still sleeping?_ ]

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

        [ _Yeah, I'm awake. :B_ ]

         Lunt wiped at the side of his mouth with a kleenex whilst the other “hand” began to type a response to Larry on his S-Cape phone.

         He said via text, [ _This guy likes knocking anybody out whenever he feels like it doesn't he?_ ]

         [ _Yeah...Thingamabob probably has some info about Dormancer back when he lived there at least!_ ]

         He exited the bathroom, went past the living room, and then entered the kitchen. [ _So Dormancer...he's a pain. They talked about you and Thingamabob working together to catch him or whatever,_ ] Lunt asked on time with grabbing a box of saltine crackers from a cabinet, [ _but hey...would it hurt if you've got a THIRD person to join you guys? ;0)_ ]

         [ _!!! :B Heck yes!_ ]

         [ _80O Whoa...language, sunshine._ ]

         [ _Is your mayor okay with you doing this?_ ]

         Lunt made a faint “pfft” sound, a small grin crossing across his lips from remembering his conversation with Ellen this morning. [ _Yeah...Mayor Ellen’s fine with it. I'm on vacation anyway. Wanna meet up at your place?_ ]

         Larry told him that, yes, meeting up later on in the day would be good. Since it appeared that Dormancer was active at night, this gathering could also be a nice outing. In addition, Alfred could dig up any other possible clues about Dormancer. Thingamabob being present was _especially_ going to be helpful.

         Once the arrangement and its confirmation was made, the bid each other with a simple “see ya then,” and then parted ways until it was time for the get-together.

         “Mornin’,” a sleepy voice from behind sounding, causing Lunt to jolt in place from the sudden noise.

         Lunt spun around and there was Nezzer, staring down at him with a sleepy grin and still wearing his spotted pyjamas. “Oh hey, Nezzie. You look well-rested this mornin’.”

         He chuckled. “Opposite of you. You look like you've seen a ghost!”

         Lunt, on cue, made a brief glance to the microwave. He could see his reflection, and, by the look of it...he seemed pale, slightly sickly. “Oh yeah…” he murmured then said to Nezzer, “Must've been somethin’ I ate. Got really sick while I was watchin’ the news and tossed my food up in the bathroom a minute later.”

         He shook the box of crackers.

         “So that's why you have that? You okay…?”

         “Yeah, yeah...I'll be fine in a minute.”

         Nezzer had an intuition for why Lunt felt sick, and the fact that the small gourd mentioned the news might have been a hint. He frowned at the thought, but he knew Lunt would eventually find out some way or another.

         “Nezz? Hey, I'm gonna be okay, honest!”

         The tall zucchini blinked, once, and then twice. Shoot, did he space out? “Sorry about that,” he apologized with a sheepish smile. “Something was on my mind…”

         “Care to share with the rest of the class?”

         “Nothin’ serious, don't worry.”

         “Well, alright. By the way…” Lunt tossed a cracker into his mouth, devoured it within seconds, and said, “I'm meetin’ up with LarryBoy and Thingamabob later.”

         Nezzer quirked a brow. “Superhero business about…?”

         “Dormancer.”

         “Oh, him.”

         Lunt whipped out a second cracker. “Yep, that stupid sleeping guy who crashed yesterday's party was screwing around after _that_ apparently.”

         Nezzer’s mouth twitched. ‘ _Stupid_ ,’ his thought echoed. ‘ _Did he_ really _call me that?_ ’ He reminded himself yet again that the insult wasn't personal against _him_ , but rather his alter ego. He mentally sighed.

         “He did, huh...”

         “Yep.”

         “I'm guessing you can't tell me much else about your meeting, can you?”

         Lunt shrugged. “Not really anythin’ _to_ hide. We superheroes are just gonna get together and talk about ‘im. Wonder why he's doin’ what he's doin’ to civilians _and_ bad guys...basically that.”

         Nezzer hummed, understanding.

         “To me, it seems like he's trying to be as annoying as possible for everybody.”

         He twitched again; however, Lunt failed to notice, for the gourd was busy placing the box of crackers back into the cabinet with a grunt. “You know...I don't get that feeling,” Nezzer calmly, casually confessed with a shrug.

         “I sure as heck do.”

         “...you're _that_ peeved by what he did at the party, aren't you?”

         “I sure as heck _am_ , Nezzie.”

         He rolled his eyes.

 

 

 

         Lunt stayed at the house for an hour before announcing he was going to head off (out of costume) to wherever he and the others planned on meeting. If Nezzer had to take a simple guess...perhaps LarryBoy’s residence was the meeting spot.

         And as Nezzer followed Lunt to the door to bid him a “see you later” and “good luck”, the purple-eyed man wondered if he should follow Lunt and listen to what would be said about Dormancer.

         “So...you walking, or taking a bus, or…?”

         Lunt turned around to face him with a shrug. “Bus, I guess. There's a bus stop down the sidewalk, right?”

         “Yeah, there is,” Nezzer replied.

         “Alright.” He tugged his jacket closer to himself, for a small breeze went by and brushed against him. “See ya, Nezzie. Have fun, okay?”

         As Lunt began to walk away, Nezzer couldn't help but chuckle at him. “Still look silly wearin’ that costume of yours, Lunt.”

         He replied over his shoulder, “I forgot to bring more clothes, give me a break!”

         On time, a bus pulled up a few feet ahead of Lunt. The gourd hopped faster until he arrived to its door, and then he climbed in as soon as said door opened.

         “See ya,” Nezzer murmured.

         He turned and then shut the door behind him.

         


End file.
